Interview with Susan Graham-Ryan, ABC North Queensland

SUSAN GRAHAM-RYAN, HOST: The 3G switch off has been very controversial, and now it’s less than two weeks away. It has been causing lots of debate, and lots of concerns, particularly for those in regional, rural and remote parts of Queensland. I spoke with Michelle Rowland, the Federal Communications Minister, and I asked her how prepared the country is for the 3G switch off.
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MICHELLE ROWLAND, MINISTER FOR COMMUNICATIONS: The biggest concern that the Government has had is around getting this switchover done in a safer way.

Last time I was mentioning how there was initially a large number of handsets that we’re concerned about – that was around 740,000 handsets which relied on the 3G network to make Triple Zero calls. We set up a Working Group, and industry has been working hard on contacting affected customers. That number is now down to around 60,000 handsets, which is better news than it was before.
 
But one of the key things here, too, is around getting people to check their technology. This is really the first mobile spectrum switchover that’s being done during the Internet of Things – so many of your listeners will have devices that are connected to mobile networks. If you’ve got loved ones who may have medical devices, or other monitored alarms, please get in touch with them. 
 
In terms of handsets, you can text the numeral ‘3’ to the number ‘3498’ and receive an instant message about the compatibility of your handset after the switchover.
 
GRAHAM-RYAN: Sixty thousand though, that’s still a lot of devices when there’s less than two weeks to go.

ROWLAND: It is a large number of devices. Not all of these devices are necessarily being used now, but we know that they have been allocated by their mobile providers.

We know that the carriers are still in contact with people, making sure that this public-awareness campaign gets as wide as it can. A key message to your listeners is that it is really important to check your tech with less than two weeks to go.

GRAHAM-RYAN: Can you confidently say that Australians, especially those in regional, rural and remote parts, will not lose or drop out some of their service with this switch off?

ROWLAND: Well, the carriers have given public coverage equivalence undertakings. We’ll continue to monitor that as a government. But again, I’d like to come back to one of the reasons why the switchover is important. We’ve had a regional telecommunications inquiry going right around Australia, including in regional Queensland. One of the biggest complaints that’s being received about mobile services is not just around coverage, but it’s around quality. The way in which better quality is delivered is by utilising the spectrum better, and that can be delivered through 4G and 5G. That signal goes further, it has less congestion and it has faster speeds. These are factors that are really important also during emergencies. So, the carriers have given undertakings on their coverage commitments when the switchover occurs. And, as a government, we will continue to monitor those commitments.

GRAHAM-RYAN: What happens if the quality and coverage of the services fall away after the 3G switch off? That’s a huge safety risk. If that happens. What will happen for the telcos? Will there be penalties involved if people are put at risk because of this 3G switch off?

ROWLAND: Well, we’ve got options for regulatory intervention if these are warranted in the public interest, subject to consultation and procedural processes. I can tell your listeners that potential regulatory action remains under consideration.

Of course, we want this switchover to go well. We want the consumers and the small businesses in regional Queensland to get the best coverage that their counterparts enjoy in metropolitan parts of Australia, and that’s why this switchover is important. It does need to be done in a safer way. The carriers did delay their switchover to undertake a mass public education campaign.

GRAHAM-RYAN: Minister, I want you to hear from a Queenslander, Monica. She’s a farmer. She also works in disaster response in the town of Mount Garnet. Here are her concerns.

[Excerpt]

CALLER MONICA: One bushfire we had in the hills between here and Chillagoe, fire department actually had to have two camps. No mobile service, UHF is line of sight. We also find that when the planes fly over to do the supposedly live stream of what they’re looking at, we don’t get any live stream until they’re actually back in service, which can be quite a while. And when we’re talking bushfires, we all know how fast they can move. The services just get worse and worse the more they improve the service. We have had satellite phones before. We were timber cutters and we used to be out in the bush a lot. When CDMA was very patchy out there, we had the satellite phone. And yeah, the cost, it’s just– it’s out of hand. And no, I wouldn’t be going to satellite. Honestly, it’s the cost.

[End of excerpt]

GRAHAM-RYAN: Michelle Rowland, Federal Communications Minister, what do you say to people like Monica about their concerns?

ROWLAND: Well, firstly, people like Monica, as a disaster management representative, are doing a really tough task, particularly in Queensland, which is one of the most disaster-prone parts of Australia.

There are probably three things that I’ll point out, and very insightful comments that she makes. A lot of the time following a natural disaster, part of the issue, of course, is access to power. Power is a massive issue; when you don’t have access– when you don’t have those towers with power, it really takes down the whole system. So, what we have been doing as a government, is investing in better resilience of the networks.

There’s a couple of streams that we’ve got there, including our Telecommunications Disaster Resilience Innovation Program; hardening mobile networks through our Mobile Network Hardening Program. These are about keeping the services on air for longer with better generators, with better sources of alternative power as redundancy. And I would point out that 22 of the 33 approved projects in that Disaster Resilience Innovation Fund are actually in Queensland, which I think, again, points to the fact that there is such need in Queensland.

On the issue of access to satellite technology, again, NBN has been investing in its SkyMuster satellite service to make that better fit-for-purpose. I think part of Monica’s comment, too, goes to new and emerging technologies. Your listeners might be familiar with LeoSats, low earth orbit satellites. We’ve been doing trials of those, including as part of looking at Universal Service reform. And that’s, again, one of the issues that came up in the Regional Telco Inquiry – the need to use better technology, more cutting-edge innovation to make sure that we stay connected for longer.

I think the third thing that Monica spoke to was around, how do you get those messages out at important times? And sometimes when the mobile networks go down, your listeners will know you’re relying on broadcasting – on radio. We’ve committed $20 million to the Broadcasting Resilience Program to improve over 100 ABC radio sites that are specifically used for emergency broadcasting. They’re really important as well. As part of that, there’s a number in Far North Queensland and right across regional Queensland.

Monica’s comments are really insightful, and I think it goes to really a suite of issues and a suite of policies that the Government has in place to make improvements. And I can tell your listeners, the biggest issue that we want to address is access to emergency services, and during natural disasters, which is why that’s been a really big focus.

GRAHAM-RYAN: That’s Federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland speaking there.