Axe the tax
The government wants to tax all broadband customers $600m and give the money to Chorus shareholders. We don’t think that’s right.
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The government wants to tax all broadband customers $600m and give the money to Chorus shareholders. We don’t think that’s right.
The Transfield issue should be of major concern to both the government and Crown Fibre Holdings in particular.
Chorus is rolling out a project to give one town in New Zealand gigabit speeds. But why only one town? Why aren’t we giving that kind of capacity to all New Zealand. It doesn’t cost any more to deliver so why not?
If the Telecommunications Act review discussion document has done anything it’s unite the industry (users, retailers and network operators) behind one common cause – making sure the Chorus Tax doesn’t get implemented.
The minister says customers should be encouraged to move to the fibre network as soon as possible, but only in Chorus’s fibre areas. In the LFCs’ areas she says Chorus can cheerfully pocket price to compete with them. Which is, it Minister? Fibre above all else or Chorus above all else?
The GCSB bill is about to pass with a majority of one and a groundswell of opposition. But where did this train of events begin? You’ll be surprised to learn it started in the early 1990s and is the end round in a very long game indeed.
Why is the Commerce Commission pressing on with its review of wholesale prices? Simple really, it’s the law. The same law the Minister is ignoring.
The government has rewarded Chorus by taking money slated for users and giving it to Chorus shareholders. In doing so, it has set a precedent for intervention in the affairs of the regulator that can not go unnoticed.
The government’s Telco Review discussion document is out and not only sidelines the Commerce Commission’s role as regulator but takes away any savings we could have had. The biggest question is, why?
New Zealand’s export earnings are almost exclusively based on dairying and our ability to sell milk powder in China. That’s all at risk now, on a scale that we should be comparing to an outbreak of foot and mouth. Why are we so dependent on one company for our country’s economic future?