Rebekha Sharkie – re Telecommunications

Centre Alliance Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie, left, and State Liberal Member for Davenport Steve Murray met with community representative Don Watton this week to discuss a proposal to install 4GX infrastructure on the NBN tower recently built at the Blackwood Golf Course (pictured behind them). The proposal would be a competitive tender project with telecommunication companies and would aim to improve mobile and data coverage in the district

Mayo has some of the highest risk bushfire zones in the nation and yet many of these areas have unreliable telecommunications and internet.

As we know Cherry Gardens is a district with steep terrain and thick bushland in parts which makes mobile phone and NBN wireless coverage problematic.

However, according to telecommunication companies, coverage is considered “adequate” and Cherry Gardens didn’t make the ‘cut’ as a black spot when the Federal Government created its Mobile Black Spot Program database more than five years ago.

I believe this was a serious omission by Government and so I am working closely with Steve Murray MP, the State Member for Davenport, to see what we can do together to find a solution for coverage issues in the region.

After discussions with industry we have been advised an efficient and cost-effective solution to the district’s problems could be achieved by installing 4GX infrastructure on the NBN tower recently built at the Blackwood Golf Course.

As always dollars need to be found so Steve Murray is seeking South Australian Government support for a regional digital connectivity project for Cherry Gardens.

I am continuing my advocacy for a Federal contribution to the project and I am cautiously optimistic that we can secure a solution.

However, we do need the telecommunications industry to also come on board.

Mobile black spots and regional digital connectivity issues are important public safety issues for our community and require appropriate collaboration from industry and governments of all levels.

We will keep you posted on our advocacy and know this issue is front of mind, I’m sure with all of us working together we will make this happen.