WELLINGTON, March 31 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand government promised cheaper prices and faster internet speeds as the result of structural changes to Telecom, which come into force on Monday.

    Legislation was passed last year requiring Telecom to split into separate retail, wholesale and network services operations.

    Effective barriers are required to ensure that competitors are treated the same way as Telecom's other clients.

    Telecom had one draft separation plan rejected by the government and submitted another draft last week, which has been accepted.

    New Zealand Communications Minister David Cunliffe said on Monday it will increase competition in the internet industry and benefit consumers.

    He said Telecom will also speed up the rollout of its next generation high-speed fiber network.