Rural MPs and senators want Communications Minister Helen Coonan to take a tough line with Telstra, which has confirmed it may cut up to 1,000 payphones.
Earlier reports suggested Telstra planned to cut 5,000 of its 32,000 payphones.
Senator Coonan promised rural Australians they would not be left without adequate phone services after the Telstra proposal emerged in a leaked company document.
Senator Coonan promised rural Australians they would not be left without adequate phone services after the Telstra proposal emerged in a leaked company document.
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Furious government backbenchers - already trying to appease voters unhappy with plans to privatise the telco - reminded Telstra it had a legal obligation to provide a minimum number of payphones.
Liberal backbencher Alby Schultz said a number of backbenchers had raised their concerns with Senator Coonan."This is the direction I have always warned Telstra would take and I am extremely concerned that Telstra is going to move some of these payphones," Mr Schultz told AAP.
The MP said he was worried profit would be Telstra's only motivation once it was privatised.
"It will be run simply on profit lines for its shareholders, to the detriment of communication service to rural and regional Australians," he said.
"The government needs to, if it has to, tighten up the universal service obligation ... so they are airtight."
The universal service obligation requires that a standard telephone service and payphone is accessible to all Australians, wherever they live or carry on business.
The government is annoyed the idea to slash the number of payphones was made public in the media - and just a week after Telstra was grilled by senators.
Telstra confirmed it was looking at getting rid of about 1,000 payphones but promised it would not have an effect on 7,500 phones guaranteed under its universal service obligations.
"Most of these are in urban areas where there is duplication," Telstra spokeswoman Liz Jurman said.
"It does not affect any (universal service obligation payphones) ... they are quarantined from this."
Nationals Senator Barnaby Joyce said it was another example of Telstra's arrogance.
"This (plan) will go to the most disaffected in the community, and will marginalise them even further," he told AAP.
Telstra is reportedly looking at cutting phones which collect between $1,500 to $4,000 from customer use each year.
But Nationals MP Paul Neville said Telstra should not be making decisions based on how much a payphone is used.
"You've got to look at ... whether or not there's mobile coverage in the area, whether or not there is a public safety issue, whether or not it's on a major tourist route where people may need to have access to a phone," he told ABC radio.
Senator Coonan put the government's position to Telstra during a meeting, where she asked the company for full details about its plans.
"She's obviously interested in looking more closely at the precise details of Telstra's plan to see where they impact and what communities would be disadvantaged," a spokesman for Senator Coonan said.
Nationals leader Mark Vaile vowed his party would hold Telstra to account.
"The universal services obligation is not negotiable and the Nationals will be keeping a close eye on the behaviour of Telstra," he said.
Opposition communications spokesman Stephen Conroy said the payphone plan was only the first wave of service cuts as Telstra moved towards full privatisation.
"(Payphones) are an essential service to the young and the elderly in our community and Telstra's plans will leave these people without any options for communications services," he said.
msn Feb 20, 2006
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