Commonwealth Numbered Acts

TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT 1991 No. 98 of 1991 - SECT 136

136. (1) The object of this Part is to promote the long-term interests of
consumers of telecommunications services by:

   (a)  promoting and protecting competition in the telecommunications
        industry generally and among carriers; and

   (b)  enabling the carriers to compete with each other on an equal basis in
        providing telecommunications networks and supplying telecommunications
        services.

(2) This object will be achieved by:

   (a)  protecting each carrier from the misuse of market power by other
        carriers in relation to access to essential facilities or access to
        consumers; and

   (b)  giving each carrier the right:

   (i)  to interconnect its facilities to networks of the other carriers; and

   (ii) to obtain access to services supplied by the other carriers; and to do
        so on terms and conditions that:

   (iii) are fair to the first-mentioned carrier and to the other carriers
        concerned; and

   (iv) promote the long-term interests of consumers of telecommunications
        services; and

   (c)  removing obstacles to consumers having equal access to the
        telecommunications services supplied by the various carriers; and

   (d)  encouraging the efficient use of, and investment in,
        telecommunications infrastructure.