Paul Connaughton Snr (Galway East, Fine Gael)

I mention that to show how dramatic the change has been. It was with a great sense of relief and rejoicing, particularly in rural areas, that one was connected with a land-line telephone 15 or 20 years ago. We had great difficulty at that stage.

Strangely enough, some of the problems now beginning to emanate from the system go back that far. When the Department of Posts and Telegraphs was in control, before the advent of Eircom, there were checks and balances, since it was State-operated. Good or bad, at least someone was answerable for it. There was hue and cry at the time of privatisation, a policy that I supported on the basis it would lead to more investment and better infrastructure. I am just referring to landlines. There is no doubt that there was major investment over the years but greedy shareholders are now beginning to appear over the fence and in large areas of the country line work is being run down. If I interpret the Bill correctly, I hope the regulator will be able to put manners on some sectors of the telecommunications sector. We will see how he will manage the situation. Some companies have become so strong that they are able to put two fingers up to anybody. I hope I am wrong, however, and that great changes will come about as a result of this legislation.

In the commercial world one would think that the consumer should be king but it is not always so. Simple mistakes can occur, such as overcharging on phone bills. Three weeks ago, I attempted to contact the people concerned about such an error. I made 24 calls but did not get an answer. I got through to several answering machines and was told to go from A to B, all over the country. I thought I was ringing Galway city but I would get through to somebody in Cork or Dundalk. I was directed all over the place but that is not good enough for ordinary consumers who might have problems with their telephone bills.

Certain people, although few in number, do not have landline phones and may wish to apply for them. In recent years, one could get a landline almost instantly but that is not the case now. I have heard of surcharges being imposed for customers in rural areas, which is a dangerous precedent. If the ESB had done that over the years it would mean that someone living in Bangor Erris or Caherciveen would have had to pay higher installation costs that people in Galway city or Dublin. That would be neither fair nor reasonable. People should not be penalised for where they live. Now that we are granting the regulator greater powers, he will have plenty of opportunity to show what can be done.

Line maintenance is another aspect of this sector. It is a bit like having possession in football. If one has the ball, one has a great chance of winning the match. With the ESB, as with Eircom, the company that owns the lines and various installations has a great chance of deciding the course of action to be taken. Much has been said about open competition but I have always had a sneaking suspicion that Eircom still calls the tune, although I may not be able to prove it. We have competition and companies are springing up all over the place but how independent are they? How competitive, sure and safe are they? Smart Telecom was not very safe. In that context, a root and branch investigation needs to be undertaken into how the system works.

Small things can be a huge irritant, especially down the country. When local authorities decide to widen a road or ease a bend to make it less dangerous there might be a telephone pole standing on the side of the road. It may take five years to decide who is responsible for removing it. They all want to ensure that the person whose house was built on that site will carry the can. That is not good enough, however, because the person who built a house recently will have had nothing to do with erecting the pole originally. In national politics that may not amount to a big issue, but it is certainly an irritant. Many such matters will have to be dealt with by the parent company that inherited the lines, poles and wires. Who owns the company now and is there any correlation between the two? In this particular case, it is said that if the county council widened the road it should be responsible for moving the pole. The council states, however, that it is concerned with road widening and road safety so it has nothing to do with the delivery of a telephone service. Before one knows it, they will turn around and say "If you want that pole shifted, you do it". I saw a tender for a simple job to relocate a telephone pole that would have cost almost €10,000. That is the kind of money we are talking about. ComReg will have a fair bit of business to do in finding out who should pay for it.

The roll-out of broadband has been referred to many times in the debate. There is no magic in broadband. We all know it is a super-highway and we understand the necessity for the speed it provides. For many years, we have also understood that if businesses are to be competitive they must have high-grade broadband. There is never any trouble finding providers in Dublin or Galway city because there is a concentration of business in those centres. In other words, there is money and profit in it, which means there will be activity. The problem starts when one decides to go out into the rural areas.

Over the years, I have always made a strong case for cottage industries. It makes no difference whether one is in Blarney, Connemara or Ardee in County Louth. If a person's business can be done from home and if it relies on broadband, there is no reason it cannot be carried out. Businesses run from home mean that there is less traffic on the road because the people concerned do not have to commute. In certain parts of the country, however, people will not be able to get broadband because there is a row over who will pay the piper. At business breakfasts, I have been told by various companies that technically it is possible to install broadband anywhere. The expertise and enthusiasm are there but until someone pays the extra cost nothing will happen. A few months ago, the Government withdrew funding for broadband in remote areas. It will take two and a half years before there is another attempt to introduce a similar scheme. I cannot understand why this should take so long, although I certainly understand that many towns and villages in remote areas will never reach their full potential until this broadband issue is solved. I hope this legislation will make a significant difference.

I do not have a great personal knowledge of the growth of unsolicited calls but from what people tell me, it appears that many are being cleaned out financially as a result. There is a certain element of innocence and I am a firm believer that anybody can be caught once but it is one's own fault to be caught a second time. For some strange reason, people incur huge bills that they cannot afford to pay and something will have to be done in response to this issue.

Regarding texting, some controls must be set in this area so people can feel safe. The issue raised may not apply directly to this Bill but it is something ComReg will have to take note of in time. I do not understand the technical provisions necessary to make the changes but there is a darker side to society and use is made of texts and mobile phones for anti-social purposes. It is important families know that somebody is in control of these matters and that the people in control have the full power to address them.

One of the main aims of this Bill is to create the so-called competition that I spoke of earlier. I hope the powers ComReg will get as a result of this legislation will be on a par with those of the Competition Authority. I have reason to believe that some of the efforts it has made mean that similar powers would be important to ComReg.

It is important that the enforcement powers ComReg receives as a result of this Bill are clear, transparent and sharp. Consumers must be able to understand them and there must be remedies that ensure people found guilty of anti-competitive behaviour are punished. Fairly hefty fines are proposed in this Bill and anything less would be of no use because of the huge amounts of money involved.

Another provision is a civil enforcement procedure to enable ComReg to enforce obligations relating to the sharing of physical infrastructure against non-undertakings. I do not have much time at my disposal but I would like to think that someone will put the boot into the warring factions involved in the mobile phone industry when they get around to deciding where to place their masts in the country. I hope that the existing masts reach optimum use and are multifunctional so that we do not see a scattering of unnecessary masts around the country. There is evidence, to this day, of local authorities deciding not to grant planning permission only to see the decision overturned by An Bord Pleanála and I would like to see transparency in this regard.

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