By VICTORIA STONE-MEADOWS
CASEY MP Tony Smith paid a visit to the Mount Evelyn football ground with Minister for Regional Communications Fiona Nash to announce funding for four new mobile phone base stations.
Mr Smith and Ms Nash announced the funding for towers in Mount Evelyn, Chum Creek, Reefton, and Kalorama on Tuesday 24 May as a condition of a Coalition win in the upcoming federal election.
The funding will make up round three of the Mobile Black Spot Program which has seen $160 million in previous rounds contributed by the Coalition Government to improve mobile phone coverage in regional areas.
“We are here today to make an absolute commitment that a re-elected Turnbull Government will provide funding for four new towers,” Mr Smith said.
“These towers will provide a big benefit for safety and a stronger local economy.”
Ms Nash said while the Federal Government and telecommunication companies decided where the towers would go, they would be built to benefit local communities.
“This round particularly focuses on difficult areas and areas that telcos may not consider commercially viable,” she said.
“We are also making sure we are taking communities’ views in consultation about what priorities are in local areas.”
The four towers announced will see telecommunication companies partner with government in the planning and building of towers in non-metro areas with poor mobile phone coverage.
“We will put locations forward and invite telcos to be part of the partnership in what is effectively a tender process,” Ms Nash said.
The projected round three of the Mobile Black Spot Program sets out locations for between 100 and 150 towers that will cover roughly 900 mobile coverage black spots.
Local businesspeople and Yarra Ranges Council were in attendance at the announcement and spoke positively about the proposed funding.
Yarra Ranges Mayor Jason Callanan said new phone towers in the area would help their local communities grow.
“It’s exciting to see mobile phone coverage is being acknowledged as black spots are a big concern to us,” he said.
“Not only on a safety level but also for economic development; we have a lot more home businesses that rely on an effective and reliable connection and this will let them prosper.”
The exact location of the new mobile phone towers will not be announced until the tender process has been completed and telecommunications companies have tested the area.
Labor candidate for Casey, Hovig Melkonian said Labor supported the program but would extend it further under a Labor-led Federal Government.
“We support Tony Smith’s announcement and support the funding of the black spot program but the Liberals have not gone far enough,” he said.
“There are 10,800 identified black spots on the national network and less that five per cent have been funded under Turnbull.”
Mr Melkonian said the towers that had been funded and built under the Coalition Government’s program were skewed towards Coalition-held seats.
“Labor is committed to enhancing the black spot program in Casey and I am disappointed in way it has been rolled,” he said.
“Some 499 towers have been funded so far, 416 of them have been in Coalition electorates and only 21 of them have been switched on.
“I don’t profess to know what’s going on exactly with how the Liberal Party are allocating funding but it does seem odd it’s not based on need, it’s happening only during election time,” he said.
Mr Melkonian also said a Mobile Black Spot program funded and managed by a Labor Government would see mobile phone towers built in places where there was the greatest need.
“I understand the importance of reliable mobile coverage in a fire-prone areas like Casey; it’s of paramount importance to ensuring everyone’s safety,” he said.
“We are committed to funding and improving the Mobile Black Spot Program on the basis of need.”
