Cabling Cowboys Part 3: A Federal Investigation Has Been Instigated

It’s now well into the new year and although Lane Cove seems to be healing at the hand of its destructors, there are still dangerous footpaths and verges still in need of restoration after the Cabling Cowboys laid cables for Data Centres in 2024.

Xenith IG, the communications company responsible for contracting the below-ground cabling carried out by QC Communications, known as the cabling cowboys, now in liquidation, are rectifying property damage, which realistically should’ve been fixed over half a year ago.

Since our second article, Xenith’s restoration progress has been slow, as many residents have come to expect, but there has been one significant update – federal intervention.

Federal Communication Minister Intervenes

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland and Member for Bennelong Jerome Laxale were made aware of the ‘cabling cowboys’ through ITC reporting. In response, Ms Rowland wrote a letter to the chairs of telecommunication regulators, TIO and ACMA, demanding an investigation into XenithIG Australia’s practices in multiple NSW Local Government Areas.

“The concerns relate to work being undertaken by Xenith IG Australia Pty Ltd in Lane Cove and surrounding areas. Local media have reported significant community concerns around the quality and safety of the cabling work being undertaken in the suburb and surrounding areas,” the letter read.

“Should the reports above be substantiated they are completely unacceptable, and residents have every right to be outraged.”

 

TIO to Investigate

The telecommunication regulators have since responded to the letter, and it was decided the TIO would investigate the issue further.

As for the communication contractors responsible for this ever-unravelling saga, ITC has reached out multiple times over the course of the investigation for comment.

QC Communications went into liquidation last August, suspending all its works around Lane Cove and, with it, estimated millions in owed payments to employees and contractors. Despite this, multiple hired contractors, anonymous ex-QC employees, and bosses have shared their disdain for the mismanagement of their own company and the alleged business practices of Xenith.

The QC liquidators are currently investigating Xenith for amounts unpaid to the communications company over the course of the contracted work.

Xenith, on the other hand, has been in operation since QC’s liquidation but took a brief four-month hiatus from our suburb. They claimed they were unable to touch any sites due to liquidation red tape – a claim disputed as inaccurate by QC’s liquidators.

The international communications company has been in contact with Lane Cove Council, relaying the terms and time frame of the rectifications – more on that later – but seems to be keeping its head down in all other aspects until the job is finished.

But will they achieve this and move on without any consequences for their potential mismanagement?

Can These Cabling Cowboys Outrun The Law?

Xenith IG first came to Lane Cove Council with plans to install fibre optic cables for private business data centres in June 2023. Work went ahead the following month and was supposed to wrap up exactly a year later; work is still continuing today.

An overshot of seven months in a large-scale construction project due to a key contractor falling into liquidation isn’t much cause for investigation, but it spans far past this.

Many residents have endured damaged private and public property, footpaths, destroyed lawns, and foul-smelling water left seeping from construction for months, to the point that many we have talked to have accepted the mess as part of their lives.

Not to mention Lane Cove Council, which has also had to exhaust resources dealing with local backlash for a problem it has no official powers to stop or solve.

Member for Bennelong Jerome Laxale saw ITC coverage of Lane Cove’s cabling cowboys and was in complete disbelief at the destruction.

“I’m just shocked, shocked that it got to this situation in the first place, and that it’s taken so long to get action,” Mr Laxale told ITC while standing next to a particularly hazardous incomplete footpath on Burns Bay Road.

“I’ve been a local Councillor and a Mayor in the city of Ryde before. I’ve had issues to deal with telecommunications companies, and with the Telecommunications Act, and I’ve seen nothing as bad as this before.

“To leave people’s homes, private and public property in a condition like this is unacceptable and needs to be investigated and addressed as a matter of urgency. Structures of this kind impede on public safety… My job is to ensure that residents around here are well represented, and I intend to do that.”

After reading ITC’s reporting, Mr Laxale contacted Ms Rowland, who requested an investigation be conducted through either the TIO or ACMA and that the findings be reported back to her.

The TIO said they took this responsibility on board but were quite vague when pressed if they had yet to contact Xenith or if they had any measures in place to prevent this from happening again.

They did express that although ACMA was excluded from the investigation, they were the only organisation that was able to enforce compliance with the Telecommunications Act. We reached out to ACMA who relayed they would step in if the TIO deemed it necessary.

Only time will tell how effective the investigation will be. ITC made these organisations aware of the shotty works in Lane Cove throughout the construction process. ACMA advised landowners to contact the TIO, while the TIO said they only had powers if damage was on private land, the majority in this situation being on council-owned land.

So it begs the question, even if the TIO and ACMA make Xenith face consequences for their actions…

How Could We Stop This From Ever Happening Again?

One alternative could be an amendment to the Telecommunications Act 1997 (The Act). A core factor that allowed work in numerous LGAs to start begins with the Act providing telecommunication companies with special powers to work on any Council land without a Development Application.

The Act also provides that any damage to land needs to be restored “to a similar condition as it was before the activity began,” but is clearly not enforced.

One suggestion to be explored is changing the Act to give Councils or communities more power to prevent a repeat.

“There are responsibilities in the act for people who undertake work. These responsibilities haven’t been met,” Mr Laxale said.

“If any amendments are required through this process or others, I’m aware that this has happened in other areas across Sydney as well, that’s something that I’d be happy to discuss with the [Communications] Minister to see how local governments can be more involved and how local communities can be more involved.”

Though Lane Cove Mayor Merri Southwood was just elected into her position in October last year, she is across the strain and resources expended by Council towards the cabling saga and would also support an Act change – but remains realistic.

“I’d be a strong advocate, but I’m a realist too. I think that trying to get the legislation changed is admirable, but it could potentially take a long time, and in the meantime, I think our community is being turned upside down a bit,” the Mayor told ITC .

“There’s a lot of work going on in their areas where the authorities have no control, and seemingly Council has no control.”

Another concern was where the buck stops. We’ve already seen one large company, which was previously seen as reputable for 30 years, seemingly suddenly go into liquidation – Lane Cove Mayor, who was previously a lawyer, wonders who will pick up the bill or wear any legal suits if this happens again.

“If somebody is walking along a footpath and they trip over and they break their leg or their head, it’ll be Council’s footpath,… it puts us in a very difficult position,” she said.

“A lot of work now is being outsourced, and then outsourced and outsourced and outsourced. So you’ve got a lot of contractors, and then they’ve got subcontractors, and the chain goes on.

“We’re in a legal environment too, where the people who often do the work poorly don’t finish up having the resources to pay for the compensation or to pay for the work to be fixed because they’ve liquidated, and that’s a problem that we’ve certainly faced in Lane Cove.”

Obvious flaws in the Act aside, we would be remiss if we did not mention multiple LGAs were also affected by similar construction from the same companies last year and have already been rectified.

Hunters Hill, Cumberland, Parramatta, Shire Council, and Canada Bay reported damages.

Canada Bay’s Mayor raised concerns with Safe Work NSW and had (most of) their damages rectified shortly after.

Similarly, the aforementioned LGA restorations were allegedly prioritised over Lane Cove. An anonymous ex-QC employee shared this was because our Council was yet to complain when others did.

So, it could be the lack of haste from our Council which was a contributing reason as to why Lane Cove is still in taters. But in saying that, should it even be Council’s responsibility to monitor and control these works in which they have no say in, to begin with? Resources are already stretched thin among multiple LGAs as various recent rate rises have shown.

It is also public knowledge that Xenith will be returning to Canada Bay this year to start a new project, while damages in their suburb, they claim, and Lane Cove still remain.

So, About Those Restorations

Xenith IG has slowly but will hopefully steadily commenced restorations to the damages caused by QC Communications since December. We’ve visited numerous sites to observe the telecommunications companies’ progress.

Wood Street, featured in previous ITC instalments, has already seen restorations from the new contractors hired by Xenith. Ralf who previously complained about his driveway being destroyed by rock breakers and his turf torn up and flooded has had a new driveway paved as well as new turf laid.

Lorraine, some metres up the road, was originally fed up with the ripped-up turf left by QC Communications outside her home for months, to the point they forked out for a replacement. To their surprise last December the turf was once again torn up and then partially replaced, this was repeated once more last week.

Finlayson Street restorations have been completed, Xenith also reported to Council that operations in Penrose Street are complete – but there still are still some concerns.

Bridge Street, a particularly unpleasant eyesore still oozing murky sludge on a small verge, is still present. A resident living adjacent to the mess said representatives shared the unfinished construction would not be touched until the water stopped seeping. With no end in sight, the resident muttered “That’s just life” exhausted in defeat as they wandered back inside.

Garling Street, another area with a seeping verge, transitioned from a muddy sector squared off by orange tape in July to a forgotten unfinished project: a natural grass barrier now encompassing its man-made perimeters.

Xenith says their biggest refurbishment project, spanning up Burns Bay Road, will be left for last. This is a questionable decision due to the many hazardous objects present next to a busy main road. The company told Council it would give them a two-week heads-up before they begin construction so they had time to apply for a Road Occupancy Licence to work near the state road.

A full restoration was promised along the area, including upgrading most of the damaged footpaths.

Lane Cove Council is waiting for more certainty from Xenith’s finalisation of works and says they continue to be in regular contact to monitor this timeframe.

Is This The End?

For now, yes. After 8 months of investigations, this is our third and final installation of the cabling cowboy crisis that has stricken Lane Cove for a year.

We will keep up with the TIO investigations into the company’s operations and report on any outcome delivered. It is also worth noting you can report any damaged property to the TIO – even if it has already been rectified – which will help with their investigations.

As stated above, we are aware that there is unfinished business, and many residents and locals are still enduring property destruction. If Xenith restorations do not continue, let us know, and we will be sure to report on it.

Read Part 1 and Part 2 of the saga at the hyperlinks.