Cunliffe David: Communications Legislation Bill — Second Reading 
Cunliffe David: Communications Legislation Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:634;Page:5444] 
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Minister of Communications) 
: 
 I move  
That the Communications Legislation Bill be now read a second time 
. In speaking to the second reading of this bill let me first extend my thanks to the Commerce Committee which has worked to report this bill back to the House in a short period and in so doing has given a full consideration to the public submissions received. I am pleased to see a unanimous report back with only minor alterations which improve the bill. 
I reiterate my comments made at the first reading that the bill is not related to decisions on the broader telecommunications stocktake which is being considered under a separate Telecommunications Amendment Bill currently before the Finance and Expenditure Committee for report back by November 2006. 
 This Communications Legislation Bill contains a number of more specific but more urgent matters and has accordingly been dealt with separately. The bill maintains a commercial environment of certainty and confidence for both telecommunications services and the users of the radio frequency spectrum. The environment will benefit both producers and consumers of goods and services be they providers of telecommunications services radio spectrum licensees customers viewers or listeners. A robust up-to-date communications sector is an essential part of an innovative growing economy. 
Let me reiterate the key objectives of the bill. Part 1 amends the Telecommunications Act of 2001. These amendments to the Act are simply to prevent the premature expiry of the regulation of 10 particular telecommunications services. Submissions to the select committee were supportive of that and no submissions were received opposing the proposal. Under the present Act the Commerce Commission can recommend that regulation be extended. Although the commission has initiated an investigation there remains a risk that the overall process would not be completed by December of this year. In any event it is of course desirable to maintain a stable regulatory environment such that the extension of regulation is not left until just prior to expiry as telecommunications service providers and customers need as much certainty as is practicable. The bill therefore extends the regulation on 10 services until 2008. 
Part 2 amends the Radiocommunications Act of 1989. The main amendments to the Radiocommunications Act concern firstly criteria for certification of licences; secondly the aggregation of consecutive management rights; and thirdly the extension of applicability of existing arbitration procedures. On the first point the certification of licences the provisions of the bill are designed to improve and clarify the requirements for the certification of licences. The bill establishes a process whereby inappropriate receivers are not to be taken into account in the certification of those new licences. Submissions to the bill were supportive of this approach. Indeed some sought an even wider approach. A further issue raised in submissions was specifically in regard to receivers and imported vehicles designed for use in Japan and potential prohibition of such receivers. I note that the select committee commentary states that this can be better approached as a consumer information issue. The committee makes a suggestion on how this could be achieved—I concur with this viewpoint. 
Secondly in relation to aggregation of management rights in time the present Radiocommunications Act provides for management rights and underlying spectrum licences to be created for periods of up to 20 years. This gives certainty of investment for services using the radio spectrum. The bill allows in limited circumstances the aggregation in time of an existing management right and a successive right. This will facilitate an efficient transition from one right to the next and give improved certainty and efficiency in the radiocommunications sector. Those rights created from 1990 onwards reach their 20-year expiry date from 2010 onwards. 
Thirdly in relation to arbitration the bill includes provisions to allow radio licensees to resolve issues concerning interference through arbitration in a similar manner to the existing provisions for commercially allocated spectrum licences. This provision recognises that radio licences are seldom revoked and that radio licensees have made investments in equipment often over many years. It is appropriate that they should be able to choose to participate in arbitration rather than be simply subject to decisions by the Ministry of Economic Development. 
All of the bill’s provisions are intended to maintain and enhance the efficient operation of the regime prescribed in the Act. Due to its nature the communications sector is subject to rapid changes in technologies in services and in commercial strategies. It is also characterised by long-term investment in physical infrastructure assets. These characteristics require a regulatory environment that allows a fair return to those who own those assets but one that is also able to keep pace with the rapid changes in technology by allowing efficient entry into markets for those services. 
This bill is an important step in New Zealand’s keeping its regulatory environment up to date. The issues are narrowly focused and they need to be dealt with now. Wider legislative changes have been proposed in order to progress decisions from the telecommunications stocktake but those provisions are more detailed and of a more strategic nature and will benefit from a fulsome discussion in the select committee in due course. 
In conclusion the Communications Legislation Bill is critical to maintaining and improving the efficiency of the communications sector. It addresses key issues of telecommunications and radiocommunications both of which are important in the information age and in continuing to grow an innovative economy. The main principles of the bill are designed firstly to prevent the unplanned expiry of regulation on a narrow range of communication services and secondly to provide the legal certainty to allow the full use of the radio spectrum. I commend the bill to the House.