Optus CEO Stephen Rue has fronted Parliament House in Canberra, copping a grilling from the Communications Minister and the media for a 13-hour triple-zero outage on September 18 that has been connected to three deaths.
Rue said he was not considering resigning and did not apologise when confronted by journalists as he entered federal parliament through the public car park.
When asked if he was considering his job with Optus, Rue replied “No, I’m looking forward to seeing the minister, I’m sure it will be a productive meeting.”
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Asked if he would apologise to Australians, the CEO said: “I’m looking forward to seeing the minister, and I’m sure it will be a constructive meeting.”
The meeting ran between 11am and midday on Tuesday and also involved the bosses of TPG and Telstra.
Communications Minister Anika Wells went into the House of Representatives immediately after to strengthen laws relating to telcos and triple zero outages.
The legislation enshrines a watchdog into law, known as the Triple Zero Custodian.
Through the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), the Custodian will be able to demand information from telecommunications providers so it can monitor Triple Zero performance, identify risks, respond more quickly to outages and make improvements.
The new laws cement the Custodian — which has been established administratively within the Department of Communications since March — as a permanent, proactive role to oversee the triple-zero system as a whole and ensure it delivers when needed for Australians.
Communications Minister Anika Wells says the law in Australia is clear.
“If an outage occurs, telcos must make sure that triple-zero calls still connect by being redirected to alternate mobile towers — that responsibility rests with them,” Wells said.
“As a government we know it’s important the triple-zero system is continually improved which is why we’ve introduced these new laws to enshrine the Triple Zero Custodian in legislation.
“Legislating a Triple-Zero custodian will help, but there is no silver bullet solution for corporate failure.
“If a telco fails Australians, like Optus did, they will face significant consequences.
“With these new powers for the Triple Zero Custodian, Australians can be assured of more active and effective monitoring of this most vital of services to make sure it meets the community’s needs.”
