Govt sets standard for emergency calls

An emergency calling code for telecommunications companies is being put in place by the Government.

It follows recent outages on Telecom's XT network which saw failures in the 111 emergency service.

Communications Minister Steven Joyce says the code will set minimum standards to ensure emergency calls are effectively delivered. He wants telcos to sign up to the code urgently and warns that regulation is a possibility if they do not do it voluntarily.

- NEWSTALK ZB