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30 May 2002 - Media ReleasePM must reprimand Nelson for misrepresenting Senator LundyThe Prime Minister must reprimand the Minister for Education and Training, Brendan Nelson for misrepresenting Senator Lundy in Question Time today. The Minister misled the House by wrongly attributing quotes made in a media release dated May 20 2002 to Senator Lundy (a copy of the release is attached). In her release, Senator Lundy had used specific quotes from members of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry to illustrate their widespread disappointment with the Coalition’s Budget. It is disappointing that the only response that the Coalition can manage to offer to the concerns of the ICT industry is to mislead Parliament by levelling baseless accusations at a Labor member. The Coalition released an unsatisfactory ICT budget, and the whole industry knows it. Brendan Nelson must immediately apologise for misrepresenting Senator Lundy. Media contact: Simon Tatz on 02 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
29 May 2002 - Media Release7.30 Report makes more Australians aware of Telstra Pair GainsThe 7.30 Report’s expose of Telstra’s use of pair gain technology last night has made more Australians aware that they are being short changed by the giant telco, the Shadow Minister for Information Technology, Senator Kate Lundy, said today. “Within a couple of hours of last night’s 7.30 Report, I received dozens of responses to my Pair Gain Victims web site, mostly from people who have never been told by Telstra that a pair gain might be the cause of their slow internet connection and inability to get broadband,” Senator Lundy said. “These are just some of the one million or so people who have a pair gain connection, but have never been told because of Telstra’s policy to keep them secret. Here are some comments received last night from Australians with a pair gain:
“Clearly, Telstra can not hide this problem from Australians any longer. Customers are waking up to the true extent of its backward thinking. “I eagerly await the results of the ACCC investigation into Telstra over this issue, but in the mean time, I call on the Minister for Communications to join me in demanding that Telstra be honest with their customers,” Senator Lundy concluded. Senator Lundy’s Pair Gain Victim web site is located at http://www.katelundy.com.au/Pairgainvictims.htm Media Contact: Simon Tatz on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
27 May 2002 - Media ReleaseTelstra finally 'fesses up – over 1 million Telstra customers affected by pair gain.Under pressure from Senator Kate Lundy’s ‘Pair Gain Victims’ campaign, Telstra has finally revealed the full impact of its use of pair gains, telling a Senate Estimates committee that one million customers are affected by the technology. Previously, Telstra had stated that nine percent of its connections used a pair gain, but in Senate Estimates yesterday, it conceded that this amounted to one million customers. “That’s one million customers who have to put up with inferior internet speeds and telephone services, and one million customers who, Telstra has also admitted, cannot receive its ADSL broadband service,” Senator Lundy said. “Of this one million, at least 125, 000 are rural and regional people, accessing the internet via the inferior service provided through pair-gains. Any claim that Telstra is improving services to the bush is ridiculous. “Although such a large number of Australians have been supplied with pair gain technology, Telstra’s policy of secrecy remains: by its own admission it does not to inform its customers when a pair gain is used, even though it reduces internet speed, denies access to ADSL broadband, and in some circumstances may restrict normal telephone use. “This practice also raises questions whether Telstra’s recent advertising of its broadband services may be misleading. These adverts make no mention of the fact that a million customers can not receive ADSL because of pair gain technology.” Pair gain technology involves splitting the single telephone line into two halves. Telstra has already confirmed that when many customers order a second dedicated phone line, they simply split the phone line in two – but charge for a completely new service. This can effectively halve the available bandwidth, often reducing capacity to no more than 28 kilo bits per second, regardless of the modem used. “Telstra can no longer dance around, denying that its use of pair gain technology is a problem, because one million Australians are proving that it is wrong. It must meet its social obligations, invest in the community, and provide a twenty-first century network,” Senator Lundy concluded Media Contact: Simon Tatz on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
24 May 2002 - Joint Media ReleaseSenator Kate Lundy- Shadow Minister for Sport
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 | in 2000-01nbsp; the deficit on ICT equipment alone reached just over $16 billion, excluding re-exports; |
| over the decade from 1990-01 to 2000-01, Australia has raked up a $94 billion deficit on trade in ICT equipment – approximately $5,000 for every man woman and child; |
| ICT equipment accounts for around 16% of Australia’s total merchandise imports – costing more than cars and fuel combined, and more than imports of food, textiles, clothing, footwear, civil aircraft, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, books, toys and leisure goods combined; |
| During 1999, Australia ranked 24th among 28 OECD countries in terms of the value of the ICT equipment surplus/deficit per 1000 population. |
| in 2000-01 the deficit on ICT services was around $720 million, discounting the one-off impact of the Sydney Olympics; |
| Since 1993-94, Australia’s accumulated deficit on ICT services approaches $3.4 billion. |
| in 2000-01 the combined ICT deficit was around $17 billion, discounting the one-off impact of the Sydney Olympics; |
| Over the six years from 1995-96 to 2000-01, Australia’s deficit on ICT trade has amounted to almost $67 billion; |
| Australia’s ICT imports continue to grow faster than exports. |
This budget has ignored an election promise on broadband, demonstrating how little an interest the Coalition has in modern Information and Communications Technology (ICT), the Shadow Minister for Information Technology, Senator Kate Lundy said today.
“Overall, last night’s budget showed that the Coalition’s interest in Information and Communications Technology was just a passing fad,” Senator Lundy said.
“Notable amongst the gaping hole of Coalition initiatives to remedy Australia’s woeful broadband penetration rate was the absence of the promised $2.1 million Broadband Content Fund.
“Although the amount involved was relatively small, this was a positive measure to drive the take-up rate of broadband internet in Australia by facilitating innovative content.
“It seemed important enough to the Coalition during the election campaign, but now that Peter Costello is concentrating on becoming the next Liberal Prime Minister, they are not interested in ICT issues,” Senator Lundy said.
During the 2001 election campaign the Coalition promised:
The Government understands that the development of compelling digital content and applications will be a key driver in promoting the take up of broadband technologies by consumers and businesses in Australia. Accordingly, the Government recently committed an additional $2.1 million to the funding of innovative broadband content.
(Our Future Action Plan Building an Information Economy for the 21st Century, p6)
“We shouldn’t underestimate the importance of broadband content development. Broadband internet will be an important contributor to the delivery of health, education and government services in the future, and good Government policy in this area would be to encourage the exploration of these possibilities now.
“Additionally, the bandwidth costs of importing foreign digital content from across the Pacific are quite considerable. This is why existing broadband providers argue they must cap their download limits. It has been estimated that 70-80 per cent of broadband content originates in the United States, and the slower we are to develop our own content here, the higher our broadband costs will be.” Senator Lundy said.
Media Contact: Simon Tatz: 02 6277 3334; 0418 488 295
The Australian cricket team was last night awarded the prestigious 2002 Laureus World Sport Award for ‘Best Team of the Year’.
The Laureus World Sport Awards are the sporting equivalent of the Oscars and are held each year in Monte Carlo.
The Australian cricket team was nominated in the ‘World Team of the Year’ category, along with Bayern Munich (soccer); the French Davis Cup team (tennis); the Ferrari Formula One team (motor racing) and the Los Angeles Lakers (basketball).
The Australian cricket team’s award is a fantastic achievement.
It is recognition not just of the tremendous accomplishments of Steve Waugh and his team, but also the coaches, administrators and sport scientists involved with our national cricket side.
The Australian Cricket Board should also be congratulated for their tireless efforts in helping Australian cricket reach the pinnacle of world sport.
This year, Ian Thorpe (swimming) was runner up in the category of World Sportsman of the Year. Michael Schumacher won the award. Other nominations were Lance Armstrong (cycling); Maurice Green (athletics); Michael Schumacher (motor racing) and Tiger Woods (golf).
Media contact: Simon Tatz on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
The Federal Budget reveals the Howard Government’s complete lack of a long-term vision for sport.
The Government’s decision to upgrade the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra is welcomed by the Labor Party because it helps ensure the sustainability of Australia’s centre for sporting excellence in Canberra.
Labor has constantly pressured the Coalition over its cuts to sport and its lack of investment in the AIS, and the Budget response was well overdue.
However much of the new money to enhance facilities at the AIS does not arrive until 2005-06.
There are many in the sporting sector who have been let down by a Budget bereft of any long-term strategy for Australian sport.
There was an expectation that after years of cuts, the Coalition would actually unveil some sort of policy vision or agenda for developing Australia’s sporting infrastructure.
Once again this expectation has not been met, and the Minister for Sport is still basing the Coalition’s entire policy agenda on Backing Australia’s Sporting Ability, a 10 page glossy booklet full of motherhood statements and feel good rhetoric.
The Minister for Sport, Rod Kemp, has taken his predecessor’s mantle of being a ‘do nothing’ Minister and squandered an opportunity to provide leadership and a comprehensive agenda for sport and physical activity in Australia.
Media contact: Simon Tatz on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
Roy and HG used to quip, “too much sport is barely enough”.
For many sport fans, however, the current fiasco over free-to-air coverage of sport shows that too much sport might indeed be too much, at least when one broadcaster tries to accommodate the demands of sports fans across Australia.
Viewers already know what happens when one station has too many sports to broadcast: delayed coverage of AFL matches finishing after 2 am in some States; no live broadcast of Rugby League matches in others. While Foxtel now has the rights to slightly delayed AFL games and broadcasts all but two Rugby League games live, there are still many Australians who cannot afford, or cannot access, pay television.
When the soccer World Cup begins in earnest in June, host broadcaster Channel 9 will be faced with satisfying the demands of soccer, Australian Rules, Rugby League, tennis and Formula One fans.
In order to accommodate their commitments to these sports, it appears that the sporting codes will have to reschedule their games to accommodate the 9 Network.
On June 7, for example, Channel 9 has the rights to the Argentina vs England World Cup match; the Kangaroos vs Richmond AFL match and the Rugby League match of the round. On June 26, the third Rugby League State of Origin match clashes with a World Cup semi-final. No doubt Channel 9 will broadcast the League fixture before their World Cup commitments - hoping that there are no delays as the World Cup games must be broadcast live.
Trying to satisfy everyone seems to have satisfied no one, and the Government has an obligation to fix this situation up.
Senator Alston is the Minister responsible for mishandling free-to-air coverage of sport. He is refusing to take responsibility for this situation. He is refusing to acknowledge that sports fans feel cheated that they can’t watch for free (or live) their favourite sport. He is refusing to acknowledge that many people cannot afford pay television.
Senator Alston must ensure that these major sports are screened at accessible times by a range of free-to-air broadcasters. Sports fans are sick of Alston’s rhetoric; they just want a quality product shown at a reasonable time.
Media contact: Simon Tatz on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
The Coalition has demonstrated that its commitment to the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector was nothing more than a passing fad, the Shadow Minister for Information Technology, Senator Kate Lundy, said last night.
“In a budget largely devoid of any mention of the crucial ICT industry sector, the only notable mentions have been the knee-capping of the National Office of the Information Economy (NOIE) and the reduction of the first instalment of funding to the ICT Centre of Excellence program,” Senator Lundy said.
NOIE has lost responsibility for ICT industry development:
“NOIE has transferred to the Department of Communications Information Technology and the Arts (DCITA), those functions directly related to the growth and development of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry. Those functions include the Centre of Excellence program and other international activities such as supporting international telecommunications forums.”
(Government Budget Papers, Portfolio Budget Statement Communications (Information Technology and the Arts) Budget Related Paper No. 1.3, page 387)
“Clearly NOIE is being stripped of a significant area of policy and programs, a significant knee-capping which can only be interpreted as a loss of commitment to and confidence in the Office by the Minister,” Senator Lundy said.
“Symbolic of this worrying development is a reduction of the first instalment of funding to the ICT Centre of Excellence program, which has been reduced from the promised $8.8 million to $7.5 million.
“Information regarding the forward years’ expenditure on this $130 million project has not been disclosed in the budget papers, so Labor will be pursuing this in Estimates.
“Finally, it appears that the Coalition’s commitment to “Competitive and effective communications and information technology industries and services and improved access to Government information” (Outcome 2) has been reduced by around 15% or around $76 million. We will be investigating precisely which programs have had their funding cut through Senate Budget Estimates hearings.
“The expectations of the ICT sector were very low, which in itself is a sad state of affairs, but their disappointment in a Government lacking in foresight in vision is justified. As demonstrated by this budget, any commitment to ICT was clearly a passing fad.” Senator Lundy concluded.
Media Contact: Simon Tatz: 02 6277 3334; 0418 488 295
The reduction of televised Australian domestic sport coverage brought about by the demise of Channel 7’s pay-TV sports channel C7 is yet another blow to sporting fans.
C7 had broadcast domestic cricket, basketball, soccer, hockey, cycling, the Victorian football League and the Queensland Rugby League. The future coverage of these sports is now in doubt.
While Foxtel and the free-to-air networks continue to provide a high standard of coverage of the major domestic sporting competitions, the so-called ‘second-tier’ sports are struggling in an increasing competitive and contracting market.
It’s about time the Howard Government did something to address this problem and gave sporting fans the respect and priorities they deserve.
Australian sport has been hit by one crisis after another, yet the Government has repeatedly failed to act on behalf of sporting organisations, competitions, players and fans to ensure the long-term viability of our domestic sporting competitions.
First, the collapse of Ansett Airlines drastically reduced the level of sponsorship for Australian sport and left many teams and competitions without sponsorship and access to ‘in kind’ sponsorship, such as cheaper air travel.
Next, the massive increases in public liability insurance resulted in the cancellation of many sporting and recreational events and put in jeopardy the future of many other events.
Then came the debacle over AFL coverage, which highlighted Senator Alston’s inability to ensure that sports coverage is adequate and that broadcasters don’t hoard rights.
Now, many other domestic sports may lose their pay-television coverage, thanks to the loss of C7.
Sports Minister Rod Kemp needs to get off the bench and start resolving the problems affecting domestic sport.
Media contact: Simon Tatz on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs IT outsourcing contract was a lesson in how not to support local IT enterprises, the Shadow Minister for Information Technology, Senator Kate Lundy said today.
Following on from revelations that an IT outsourcing contract that the Coalition boasted would only cost $65 million in 1997 has in reality cost $140 million, Senator Lundy criticised the contract for its failure to guarantee any business from local small to medium enterprises (SMEs).
“When the DVA IT outsourcing contract was signed in 1997, the Howard Government told us that it would result in job creation and small business growth, especially in regional Australia. Yet despite this commitment, the contract did not specify either the number of contracts to be awarded to SMEs, or the total value of these contracts.
“As a result from a contract worth $140 million, the contractor only sub-contracted out $3.5 million to SMEs,” Senator Lundy said.
“One of the principles of Commonwealth procurement should be to support the development of the local ICT industry, the future of Australia’s knowledge-based economy. This contract is yet another example of how the Coalition Government has failed small to medium IT businesses.”
Media contact: Jason Ives on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
The continuing fall in the ICT jobs market is an important reminder that the Howard Government should place more importance on supporting industry development when it considers IT outsourcing tenders, the Shadow Minister for Information Technology, Senator Kate Lundy, said today.
Speaking on the back of the findings of the recently released Olivier Internet Job Index, which indicate that Australian IT job advertisements have fallen 73 per cent in the last year, including a 3 percent drop in the past month, Senator Lundy said “while IT employment depends upon the overall health of the economy, the Government needs to ensure that its IT outsourcing policies have the maximum positive impact on Australian ICT job creation.”
“Currently there is no indication that this is happening.
“Yesterday’s report from the Australian National Audit Office on the Department of Veterans’ Affairs IT outsourcing contract said that from an IT outsourcing contract estimated to come to a total cost of $140 million, only $3.5 million dollars had currently flowed to local small to medium enterprises.
“Given that small businesses are claimed to be the engine of employment, if these proportions are repeated in other Government Departments and Agencies in the midst of IT outsourcing contracts, then the Howard regime is not playing its part to stimulate job creation in the ICT sector,” Senator Lundy concluded.
Media contact: Jason Ives on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
Today’s Department of Veterans’ Affairs IT outsourcing blow-out is more compelling evidence that the Howard government has no idea how to manage its information technology requirements, the Shadow Minister for Information Technology, Senator Kate Lundy said tonight.
“The legacy of the Coalition’s IT outsourcing program of the last six years is beginning to come back to haunt the Government as taxpayers discover its true cost,” Senator Lundy said.
“The fact is that five years ago the Howard Government jumped on the outsourcing bandwagon, shamelessly promising savings that by and large, have never eventuated. In this case, the promised savings of $20 million, which the Government was keen to announce at the time, have evaporated, and the final cost of $140 million was more than double the estimated costs of the contract of $65 million.
“The reality of IT contracts is that costs go up; and this blow-out demonstrates that the government has been irresponsible in promising the savings it did,” Senator Lundy said.
“The blow-out in the cost of the DVA IT outsourcing arrangement demonstrates that the Howard Government never had the faintest notion of the enormity of the challenges of the strategic management of information and the technology behind it.
“The Government should now come clean so that tax-payers know what other IT outsourcing blow-outs are in store for them,” Senator Lundy concluded.
Media contact: Jason Ives on 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
Earlier today the Shadow Minister for Sport, Senator Kate Lundy, launched Australian Netballer, an exciting new information source for players, coaches and umpires of Australia’s largest adult participation sport.
Published nationally, but based here in Canberra, Australian Netballer is the creation of former ACT representative player Anne Quinn, who turned to publishing when she saw that there is currently no general national netball magazine in Australia.
At the launch, Senator Lundy said, “Australian Netballer is a fantastic magazine coming out of Canberra. It will provide all the information and news about the sport that, until now, netball fans and participants have been missing out on.”
Netball Facts
 | Netball Australia (the national netball association) estimates that there are 1.2 million netball players (junior and senior) in Australia |
| The Australian Netball Team is currently holds both the World Championship title and 1998 Commonwealth Gold Medal. |
| Australia’s national Netball league is considered to be the best national netball competition in the world |
For more information about this great magazine, please contact Anne Quinn on (02) 6231 2452 or visit the website at http://www.ausnetballer.com.au
Media contact For Senator Kate Lundy: Jason Ives 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
Starved of interesting and in-depth news of
their sport, Australia’s estimated 400,000 netball enthusiasts can take heart
this week with the launch of a new Canberra-based national netball magazine,
Australian Netballer.
To be launched by the Shadow Minister for Sport Senator Kate Lundy, Australian Netballer is the brainchild of former ACT representative player turned publisher Anne Quinn, and promises to fill the current information gap in Australia’s largest participation sport.
“Australian Netballer aims to provide more information for Australia's netball enthusiasts, to establish a place for debating and analysing netball issues, and to take an interested look at netball culture and the diversity of the netball community,” said Anne.
“It will provide practical information for coaches, in-depth discussion about netball and broader sport issues, and coverage of netball events and personalities.
‘I hope that Australian Netballer will become a vehicle for sharing information about this enormously popular sport. Netball has a rich culture and there’s a vast amount of playing, coaching and administrative expertise in Australia.
“It’s time we started to recognise this and let everyone else see it too. Although media coverage of netball is improving, it still isn’t commensurate with Australia’s status in the netball world as World Champion and Commonwealth Games gold medallist,” Anne said.
As well as covering the game at the elite level, Australian Netballer will investigate what’s happening at the local and rural level and examine how the game is encouraging girls and women to take part in physical activity and to become team members and leaders.
“I want to have a look at how the game might be shaping people’s lives,” Anne said.
Australian Netballer will be published monthly during the netball season (April to October) and bi-monthly in the off-season (December and February) and will feature contributions from experienced netball journalists, players and coaches. It will be available in newsagencies around the country and by subscription at a cost of $4.00, including GST.
For more information about this great magazine, please contact Anne Quinn on (02) 6231 2452
The Coalition’s decision to flog off a huge chunk of the Tuggeranong Town Centre demonstrates that it has no respect for the democratic rights of Canberrans, the Federal Labor Senator for the ACT, Kate Lundy, said today.
“The advertised sale of the Greenway site, without any consultation with the elected representatives of the ACT, defies belief,” Senator Lundy said.
“In the interests of his budget bottom line, John Howard has decided to ignore the Stanhope Government, and sell land to the highest bidder without any regard to Territory planning processes.
“This sale represents a resolution to prevent local residents from deciding how they want their city to be developed for the future.
“The people of the ACT have elected their own Territory government, but the Coalition has said ‘We are not interested in your opinions, we will say how your city should be run.’ Once again, they have decided to treat us with contempt.
“The only acceptable answer to this insult is for the Coalition to return the land to the people of the ACT, as befits the spirit of self-government.
“To this end the Liberal ACT Senator, Margaret Reid, should be on the phone to John Howard now, representing her electors, and telling him that this treatment is unacceptable, and the sale should be scrapped,” Senator Lundy concluded.
The proposed land sale is just the latest of a series of unwarranted Coalition intrusions into Canberran democracy. It follows the scuttling of local efforts at drug law reform, and the attempt to pervert the course of democracy in relation to the Gungahlin Drive extension during last year’s local election.
Media contact: Jason Ives 6277 3334 or 0418 488 295
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