Monbulk electorate telecommunications
Daniela DE MARTINO (Monbulk) (19:11): (536) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Government Services, and the action I seek is for the minister to visit my community of Monbulk to speak to locals about the impact of the recent power outage and subsequent telecommunications issues that left many without the ability to make 000 calls. Telecommunications are an essential and critical service. When a catastrophic weather event occurs it becomes life or death, so it is incumbent upon telecommunication providers to keep essential infrastructure running when disaster strikes. The Dandenong Ranges simply cannot be put in this position every time a storm occurs, especially when we saw some telco providers posting billion-dollar profits while on the same day vast sections of my electorate were isolated after the storms tore down powerlines, disconnecting mobile towers from power and completely cutting my constituents off from communication. I know that the minister is seeking a meeting with the federal minister about this matter, and I strongly lend my voice to her advocacy.
Even on a good day in the hills black spots are a regular occurrence. I am pleased that we have stepped in with our Connecting Victoria program to fund telecommunications infrastructure across the state to address this. Dozens of telecommunications projects were announced for the Dandenong Ranges in 2022 through our Connecting Victoria program, a $540 million program to improve mobile and broadband connectivity across the state. This includes NBN broadband upgrades in Monbulk and new mobile towers in various townships. It would be fantastic for the minister to visit one of these telecommunications towers, which the Allan Labor government is delivering through Connecting Victoria in my community, on this visit. I look forward to working closely with the minister on this matter over the coming months and very much look forward to her visit.