Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Triple Zero Custodian and Emergency Calling Powers) Bill 2025; In Committee

Opened the debate

McGrath moved amendments to insert civil penalties of $40 million for contraventions of specific telecommunications acts and to require ACMA reports to be tabled in Parliament. McGrath argued that the government had failed to work in good faith with the Coalition on these issues despite previous offers. The member contended that a public register of outages and transparent reporting were essential for public confidence, criticizing the government for relying on telco-held registers rather than a centralised system. McGrath also challenged the government to table a letter sent to ACMA regarding the outage register.

Government response

Green defended the government's approach, stating that penalties had already been tripled through an amendment supported by the Greens. Green argued that the bill established a Triple Zero Custodian with proactive powers to prevent outages, which was more important than retrospective reporting. The minister confirmed that telcos would be directed to maintain public registers of outages by the end of the year, with parameters determined through consultation. Green eventually tabled the requested letter to ACMA and maintained that existing reporting mechanisms provided sufficient accountability.