Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I was directly responding to the issue the member raised about cost of living and families, and I was directly responding on the productivity and competition advantages we need from this technology. I am not content to see this country export jobs to other countries. On the question of cost of living and the NBN, the member may be interested to know that, if we look at the costs of broadband among OECD countries, Australia is the fifth most expensive. That is happening now: real money coming out of families’ pockets, out of their pay packets, to pay for the fifth most expensive broadband. I want to see Australia get the advantages of cheaper broadband. I want to see Australians get the productivity advantages of that, the GDP advantages of that, the health service delivery advantages of that and the education delivery advantages of that. That is why the government is determined to build the National Broadband Network and not settle for the 20th plan coming from the opposition—every one of those plans a weeping failure.

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