Communications Minister Helen Coonan wants the government to defer a decision on the price Telstra charges its rivals for base access to its copper wire network until early May.

Telstra's competitors have taken issue over Telstra's plan to charge an average price of AU$30 to access the unconditioned local loop (ULL), which will increasingly be used to provide internet and phone services. They say the price should be no more than AU$11 for city areas.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) says four pricing bands should apply -- AU$13 for inner city, AU$22 for metropolitan areas, AU$40 for regional and AU$100 for rural and remote areas. But Telstra says the AU$30 price is fair and a lower price could cut its revenue.

A spokeswoman for Senator Coonan today said the minister had suggested Prime Minister John Howard defer any decision on the ULL until talks between the ACCC and Telstra over a new fibre cable network have ended.

It is understood the talks have been constructive and a decision on a new undertaking could be released on May 5.

Cabinet is expected to discuss Finance Minister Nick Minchin's plans for the full sale of Telstra at a meeting on May 8 -- the day before the federal budget.

The AU$3 billion network, known as fibre-to-the-node (FTTN), would service almost 90 per cent of the country and largely replace the existing copper network.

Telstra has deferred a decision on rolling out the network until it can get a satisfactory decision from the government on regulations, including pricing controls.

Senator Coonan's spokeswoman said reports the minister had canvassed changes to the regulatory regime with Howard were wrong.

"The minister has said on many occasions that she believes Telstra can gain regulatory certainty from the current system which has been settled since changes were made last year," the spokeswoman said.