Signposts for Change: People with Disabilities and Telecommunications Forum
Monday, 16 February 2009
It is a pleasure to be here for the Signposts for Change: People with Disabilities and Telecommunications Forum.
I would like to thank Ms Gunela Astbrink for suggesting we stage this event.
Gunela has worked with my Department to organise what I know is going to be a very productive and informative day.
I know some of you have travelled a long way to be here and I appreciate your dedication to represent the communications interests of people with disabilities.
This forum provides an opportunity to examine current arrangements for the provision of telecommunications products and services to people with disabilities.
It also allows us to assess, whether those arrangements are delivering the desired outcomes.
As you would all appreciate, Australians with disabilities experience daily challenges over and above those faced by the general community.
The Rudd Government recognises that accessible, affordable and readily available telecommunications products and services can help to lessen some of these challenges.
These tools are essential for all Australians, particularly disadvantaged Australians, to fully interact in society and participate in day–to–day activities.
They provide opportunities for people to participate in business, education and health care.
They also have a very positive effect on the social and psychological well–being of people with disabilities.
Accessibility, affordability and availability are three themes that I expect you will hear a lot about during the course of the forum.
These themes, and their application to information and communications technology, link directly with the Government's social inclusion agenda.
Social Inclusion
The Rudd Government believes that all Australians need to be able to play a fulfilling role in all aspects of life.
To this end, we have adopted, and are actively pursuing, the implementation of a social inclusion agenda.
This agenda recognises that people with disabilities face additional barriers when it comes to participating in everyday life.
It recognises that all Australians must be given opportunities to:
- secure a job;
- access services;
- connect with family, friends, work, personal interests and the local community;
- deal with personal crises; and
- have their voices heard.
The Government has also identified early priorities for social inclusion, including employment for people living with a disability or mental illness.
This is where the Government's telecommunications infrastructure and service initiatives can deliver concrete outcomes and benefits.
The Seoul Declaration
Last year I attended the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Ministerial Conference on the future of the internet economy in Korea.
The meeting agreed on the Seoul Declaration, which outlines a shared global vision for our digital economies.
It has a strong emphasis on access for all disadvantaged groups, including those with disabilities.
The Rudd Government is strongly committed to pursuing digital economy objectives as outlined in the Declaration, including in the area of protecting and empowering consumers.
As part of our commitment, we are developing and adopting policies that recognise the potential of digital technologies to provide enhanced services to people with disabilities.
The Digital Economy
People often ask me what we mean when we talk about the digital economy.
The digital economy is the global network of economic and social activities which are enabled by digital technologies, particularly the internet.
It also includes personal and commercial transactions.
The late actor Christopher Reeve once said: "the internet is an essential tool, and literally a lifeline, for many disabled people."
The Government agrees with this statement.
That is why we are implementing major programs such as the National Broadband Network, Clever Networks and Backing Indigenous Ability to make communications services more accessible and affordable to all.
Effective use of the internet by consumers and businesses will drive higher productivity growth and community participation in the digital economy.
This is important for the future productivity, competitive standing, and social and economic well–being of Australia, and other countries.
Broadband
Investment in broadband infrastructure is a key step in supporting increased participation in the digital economy.
Broadband technology underpins digital communications applications that all sectors of the community—including health institutions—require now, and will increasingly require in the future.
It is essential that people have access to the most up to date products and services to ensure their participation in our increasingly digital society.
National Broadband Network
The Government's $4.7 billion dollar investment in the National Broadband Network will provide the primary platform for delivering fixed high–speed broadband services across the country.
It will also provide the platform for basic services like voice, as well as many other new and innovative applications for decades to come.
The economic and social implications of the NBN are therefore profound.
A number of the objectives of the National Broadband Network are aimed at achieving improved outcomes for consumers, including people with disabilities.
These include the availability of minimum broadband speeds of 12 megabits per second to 98 per cent of Australian homes and businesses.
For example, this will enable people who are blind or vision impaired to more easily access information in an audible format.
The NBN will support symmetric applications such as high–definition video–conferencing, and high–quality voice, data and video services.
This will benefit those who lip read or use AUSLAN to conduct conversations online.
The NBN will also enable uniform national retail prices.
This will have obvious affordability benefits for users.
Proposals for the National Broadband Network have been received and reviewed by a Panel of Experts.
The Panel reported to me on 21 January, and the Government is currently considering that report in very close detail.
Regional Telecommunications Review
Reliable telecommunications services are essential to enable people in all parts of the country, including regional, rural and remote areas, to fully interact in society.
This is particularly important for people with disabilities living outside metropolitan areas.
People with disabilities in regional Australia face the added challenges of distance and more limited services compared to people in more built–up areas.
The Regional Telecommunications Independent Review Committee was established to undertake an assessment of the adequacy of telecommunications services in regional parts of Australia.
I tabled the report of this review in Parliament in October last year.
The committee found that people in regional areas with special needs require access to new technologies and services at an appropriate price, including support mechanisms, to enhance their interactions with society.
The Government is currently preparing its response to the review, which is due before the 5th of March.
Other broadband initiatives
In addition to the NBN, the Government is also pursuing new or improved broadband infrastructure and services to regional, rural and remote areas of Australia.
I would like to take a moment to outline two projects we are supporting under the Government's $118.6 million Clever Networks program.
These are ScopeConnect and Livewire.
ScopeConnect, through Scope Victoria, (a not–for–profit organisation that provides disability services to 6,000 children and adults), uses fixed and mobile broadband to deliver more efficient services.
The Clever Networks program is assisting Scope to build a shared network and to connect 18 of its rural and regional offices to DSL broadband.
ScopeConnect will also equip 80 staff with 3G enabled wireless devices, to provide them with full access to client information when away from the office.
The quality of service to the disabled, and the savings in time and resources for therapists, will increase substantially as a result of these efforts.
The ScopeConnect project is expected to be fully operational in March this year.
Meanwhile, the Livewire project, which I launched in November, aims to improve the quality of life for young people with a serious or chronic illness, including a disability.
Broadband internet offers many opportunities, and Livewire is an important initiative to ensure young people in hospital are able to benefit.
By providing bedside broadband services, young Australians with a serious illness are able to remain connected to the people and places they love, especially when they are a long way from home.
Access to the Livewire online community allows them to communicate and share experiences with other patients in a safe and supportive environment.
Indigenous initiatives
The Rudd Government is also committed to closing the gap in Indigenous disadvantage.
Indigenous Australians are disadvantaged in terms of literacy and numeracy, health and wellbeing, and employment.
Those living in remote communities have limited access to telecommunications services and internet infrastructure.
Increasing access to telecommunications in remote Indigenous communities is challenging and complex, due to factors such as geography and climate.
The Government's Backing Indigenous Ability Telecommunications Program is meeting this challenge.
We are providing eligible remote Indigenous communities with:
- access to public fixed or satellite telephone services;
- training in computer and internet use;
- video–conferencing facilities; and
- improved online content resources.
This is providing Indigenous Australians with greater access to support services including health, education, community support and justice.
Independent Disability Equipment Feasibility
As I have described, the Rudd Government is committed to providing all Australians with access to affordable communications products and services so that they can interact fully in society.
It also remains committed to exploring other avenues for improving the lives of people with disabilities.
For example, the consumer protections set out in the current telecommunications regulatory framework are centered on the standard telephone service.
But, as we all know, telephone usage habits are changing.
Equipment that provides access to the standard telephone service is not always the best, or most practical, communication option for people with disabilities.
The advent of the mobile phone and the internet has also changed our reliance on the standard phone as our primary means of communication.
The current regulatory arrangements also place obligations on some carriers to provide appropriate equipment, that enables people with disabilities to access the standard telephone service.
This equipment must be provided at the same rental rate as for standard phone handsets.
In Opposition I expressed support for an independent disability equipment program.
There is still merit in that proposition.
Therefore, the Government will now undertake a feasibility study into whether a disability equipment program—independent of telecommunications carriers—should be established.
The Department has already done some preliminary scoping work for the study.
It will involve a detailed market analysis of the current arrangements for providing equipment to eligible people with disabilities.
The study will assess the estimated demand for specialised equipment over the next 10 years, and what eligibility criteria might apply to accessing that equipment at subsidised rates.
It will also include a technology analysis of what sort of equipment might be required, and whether some equipment not currently available in Australia, should be made available.
An analysis of projected operational costs and funding options will also be undertaken.
I have asked my Department to ensure that there is comprehensive public consultation.
Today's forum is an ideal opportunity for you to set the agenda and provide input into what the feasibility study might include.
In order to fully understand the current market environment, the Department will undertake targeted consultations with disability and consumer advocates, carriers and industry representatives.
These findings will be provided to me by December this year, and I look forward to the outcome of the study.
Conclusion
Once again, thank you for taking time out from your busy schedules to be here today.
It has been a pleasure to join you.
I look forward to hearing the outcomes of your discussions and I wish you a productive forum.
Thank you.
