INQUIRY INTO PUBLIC EQUITY IN TELSTRA CORPORATION LTD
Table of Contents

Minority Report

Senator Nick Sherry - Australian Labor Party  

These comments reflect the views of the Opposition members of the committee.

The Opposition members are of the opinion that this inquiry merely confirms the charade the Government has engaged in order that it could ensure the passage of the Telstra (Dilution of Public Ownership) Bill 1996.

At no stage during this inquiry have the Government shown any intention or desire to seriously consider Senator Harradines proposal that the 1/3rd sale of Telstra be funded by the issue of redeemable preference shares.

While a number of alternate financing options were canvassed during the hearings of the committee the Government merely went through the motions in order to honour its commitment to Senator Harradine to examine the issue of redeemable preference shares. At no stage was the Government remotely interested or serious about the redeemable preference share proposal.

The appointment of the float managers before this committee reported and before the Telstra sale bill is proclaimed only demonstrates the total irrelevancy the Government places on this committee report. The Government recommendation was written before the committee heard its first witness. It has been nothing short of an expensive government charade fully funded by the Australian taxpayer.

This report is merely a testament to the Governments ideological obsession to sell Telstra at any cost. The money wasted on this inquiry demonstrates that the Government will go to any lengths in order to ensure that Telstra is sold.

It is also unprecedented to hold a Senate inquiry into what was a fait accompli. The Government have already secured the approval of the Parliament to allow the sale of 1/3 rd of Telstra, yet it engaged in a meaningless inquiry that will have no influence or bearing on the Governments intention to sell 1/3rd of Telstra.

This inquiry was nothing but a sham and a deception on the Australian people that the Government was actively interested in Senator Harradine's redeemable preference share proposal.

Finally the Opposition members reiterate the findings of the Senate Environment, Recreation, Communications and the Arts References Committee findings into the Telstra sale that no empirical evidence exists to support the claims made by the Government that the Australian economy and Australian consumers will benefit from the 1/3 rd sale of Telstra.

The 1/3 rd sale of Telstra is nothing but the beginning of the Governments ideological obsession to ensure that 100% of Telstra is sold in the quickest politically expedient time as possible.

Recommendation:

Senator Nick Sherry

Australian Labor Party