Telstra and Alby Shultz

Alby Shultz is the Federal (Liberal) Member for the electorate of Hume, in regional SW NSW.

He has issued a number of press releases about how selling Telstra would disadvantage regional voters, including those in his electorate. The most recent press releases were on 14 July 2006, and in the local newspapers during the week starting 28 August 2006. They concerned regional job cuts by Telstra, including field service officers and telephone network designers.

Alby Shultz has always said that selling Telstra would be bad for people who live in regional areas. ie. non-metropolitan areas, and especially those who live outside regional towns and cities.

Telstra is concentrating its resources in (mostly) metropolitan areas - the areas where it expects to make more profit and greater Return On Investment - to make it more appealing before its impending sale.

Yet on EVERY occasion when Mr Shultz had an opportunity to oppose the sale of Telstra in Parliament, he didn't. The action he took was to abstain from voting.

By so abstaining, and not voting for the good of people in his electorate, Mr Shultz has put the interests of the Liberal Party, and his own electoral (preselection) interests first. The people of his electorate, especially those in more remote areas, came last. They deserve better.

The Analyst