SHARON CLAYDON MP
DEPUTY SPEAKER IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MEMBER FOR NEWCASTLE

Federal Member for Newcastle Sharon Claydon has joined calls for urgent action to address mobile phone and internet reception issues in Stockton.

Ms Claydon recently wrote to the community asking them to share their experiences and the response has been overwhelming.

The community’s fight for better services has now been taken to the floor of the Parliament with Ms Claydon delivering the following speech this week.

“Almost 5,000 people live in Stockton, which is just a few minutes by ferry from the city of Newcastle. It's a tight-knit, strong and resilient community. But ongoing problems with mobile phone reception and poor wi-fi and internet connectivity are really taking their toll.

“Newcastle is Australia's sixth-largest city, which makes these poor telecommunications experiences for Stockton residents especially shocking. In 2024, mobile phone reception, wi-fi and reliability of connectivity are essential services, yet too many people in Stockton have been let down.

“I recently met with Telstra and Optus to raise Stockton community residents' concerns directly with them. I'm pleased that Telstra has agreed to investigate its telecommunications network in the suburb, and I've asked the same of Optus because we need to identify these problems and get them fixed. I've also written, with the support of Stockton Community Group, an expression of interest under the Peri-Urban Mobile Program for a grant aimed at improving coverage. Hopefully, that will be of help too.

“More recently, I've written to all residents of Stockton to ask them to share their lived experiences of the telecommunications services in the suburb. Residents have been inundating me with their experiences. They speak about fears of constant dropouts and not having reliable tools for study for their children. These are unacceptable in 2024, and we're doing everything we can to fix them.”

ENDS