Telstra Group (ASX:TLS) Chief Executive Vicki Brady has urged the government to grant telecommunications companies access to new spectrum and reduce regulatory burdens, saying these steps are vital to support Australia's surging data demand and connectivity needs in the era of artificial intelligence, the Australian reported on Wednesday.

Speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday, Brady pressed for a national digital infrastructure strategy, highlighting the importance of greater access to the "scarce natural resource" of spectrum to widen communications services, the report added.

Brady said Telstra requires additional lower-band spectrum to improve coverage in regional areas, more mid-band spectrum to ease network congestion, and access to new spectrum to enable 6G technology as well as satellite-to-mobile voice and data services.

On fiber rollout, Brady said complex legislation and varying state requirements have made installation costly and time-consuming, as she added that the Sydney-Canberra-Melbourne coastal route alone, Telstra undertook more than 6,000 approvals and surveys to lay just over 1,000 kilometres of fiber.

The company's shares rose almost 2% in recent Wednesday trade.

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