KEY POINTS:
It is "highly likely" the unbundling bill to break open Telecom's network to competitors will be passed next week, says Parliament's finance and expenditure committee chairman, Shane Jones.
Parliament would probably go into urgency next week to enact pressing legislation in the final three days of the parliamentary year, Jones said yesterday.
It was very possible that the Telecommunications Amendment Bill would be passed.
Meanwhile, Communications Minister David Cunliffe will have far-reaching powers to manage the split of Telecom, say industry observers.
The committee recommended that the minister - instead of the Telecommunications Commissioner - take charge of managing Telecom's split into three units: Network access, wholesale and retail.
This would give Cunliffe "very far-reaching powers", said Telecommunications Users Association chief executive Ernie Newman.
Jones has said Cunliffe would have "considerable authority" compared with the commissioner Douglas Webb five years ago.
The move has concerned analysts who said the process was now exposed to politically motivated outcomes when public support for regulation of the sector was so high.
The minister's powers are akin to the those of the Transport Minister, who would have had the final decision on Air New Zealand's plan for code-sharing with Qantas.
