MOBILE PHONE SERVICE DECLINE

MOBILE PHONE SERVICE DECLINE

In November last year, a vast number of Barker residents lost mobile phone service when the Federal Labor Government switched off the 3G network.

In the lead up to that switch off, the Albanese Labor Government had been focused on ensuring that Australians upgraded their equipment to ensure compatibility with the 4G spectrum.  We heard very little from the Federal Communications Minister about how this would impact rural and regional Australians and to the extent we did we were assured that 3G-only areas would experience no loss of coverage.

In the lead up to that switch off the Albanese Labor Government also failed to fund any new mobile phone towers in Barker because our electorate wasn’t on Labor’s list of ‘targeted locations’ for around 6 of the Mobile Blackspot Program.

Meanwhile the mobile base station promised for the Limestone Coast more than twelve months ago remain stuck in the ‘planning’ phase with construction unlikely to begin until this time next year.  Clearly given all of this no effort was being made by Albanese or his Communications Minister to fast track the rollout of these towers before 3G was disabled.

It’s now 2.5 years since Labor was elected and mobile phone service is worse now than at any time in the last decade.  With Labor busy vying for votes in Western Sydney as well as inner-city and suburban Melbourne, rural and regional Australians are being left behind.

Let’s be clear, this isn’t about Barker missing out because it’s regarded as a safe seat.  If that were the case, I wouldn’t have been able to deliver 32 new mobile phone towers under the former Coalition Government.  It’s simply because Labor doesn’t understand or worse still doesn’t care about rural and regional Australia.

Modern telecommunications expectations are not being met under Labor.

Anyone experiencing poor mobile phone service can ‘rate their reception’ through my website at www.tonypasin.com/rate_your_mobile_reception

This information will assist me in my work to pressure the telcos and governments at all levels to address blackspots and deliver improvements to the mobile network in Barker.