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

I say to the member that he will have access to the National Broadband Network business plan to inform a national debate. But I believe that debate should be based on facts. I believe that debate should be based on goodwill. I believe that that debate should be conducted with the national interest rather than an individual’s political party’s political interest paramount.

The member who asked the question comes to this parliament with some expertise in telecommunications. On the National Broadband Network, and some of his earlier writings, I would simply pose to him the following questions. Does he believe that the structural separation of Telstra is in the national interest? Of course it is. Does he believe that Australians having access to superfast national broadband is in the national interest? Of course it is. Has he absorbed all of the information already in the public domain about the National Broadband Network? The image he tries to paint that somehow there is not information in the public domain is entirely untrue. There have been detailed assessments undertaken by expert panels. We published the implementation study from McKinsey and KPMG—over 500 pages of analysis. We will publish the NBN business case. There is a live trial underway in Tasmania. There is a great deal of information to inform this national debate. And yet, with that great deal of information informing the national debate, and with more to come, what the opposition are really saying, when you strip it all down, is, ‘It does not matter what the information is, it does not matter what the facts are, it does not matter what the benefits are, we will demolish the NBN—full stop.’

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