The much-needed legislation for establishing the operating conditions of the National Broadband Network (NBN) company is not part of parliament discussions next week.

The absence of a law on the NBN from more than 40 bills scheduled for parliament scrutiny next week raises uncertainty among property developers and telecommunications investors. Residential Development Council executive director Caryn Kakas said, “We are basically on hold.”

Kakas also warned that broadband costs ranging from $4000 to $5000 could be passed on to home owners in regional areas. Moreover, the executive director said developers could pass on the $400,000 to $700,000 installation cost of broadband backhaul links in some projects.

AAPT chief Paul Broad also expressed concerns over the delayed NBN laws. The chief of Australia's third-largest telecommunications company said, “It's just more uncertainty until it's passed... The amount of investors we can attract to this industry will significantly decline because who would want to put money in a sector when there is so much uncertainty?”

Broad explained that “we're talking about eight or 10 years until the NBN is built so in that time we need to invest and keep attracting investment to keep this industry turning over.”

The NBN legislation will clarify planning controls under the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC).