Motion (by Senator Mackay) agreed to:

That the Senate—

(a) notes, with concern, the scheduled closure of Telstra's Hobart Work Management Centre in January 1999 and the loss of up to 35 highly skilled positions because of this closure,

(b) deplores Telstra's empty assurances to the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (Senator Alston) that the centre would remain open; and

(c) calls on the Minister, in accordance with subsection 9(1) of the Telstra Corporation Act 1991 , to direct Telstra to amend the Telstra Business Plan to allow for the centre to remain within Hobart and the retention of the positions within the centre as this is necessary in the public interest.