Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

After we heard from the representative of the Minister for Communications, I thought we would hear from someone from that portfolio. I thought we would hear from the innovation minister. Instead who did we hear from? Someone symbolically connected with the horse and buggy—the whip. That is how far back we have to go with those opposite when it comes to the NBN.

Let us remember what the national broadband network is all about. Why are we investing money in the national broadband network? The NBN will give us the jobs of the future. The NBN will give us boosts in innovation, and I do not mean a $28 million fake advertising campaign about innovation. The NBN will deliver innovation. The NBN will boost productivity, whether it be in manufacturing, whether it be in education, whether it be in delivering services in the Asian century.

That is why Labor were prepared to invest in fibre. Labor were prepared to invest in it. We said right up-front, 'Let us do it right; let us do it once; let us do it with fibre.' We know it was a great policy because those opposite said that they would do the same thing. In fact, in 2013 Malcolm Turnbull promised that, under a coalition government, in 2016 all Australians would have access to their NBN. That was the promise. A booklet was waved by every coalition candidate around the country, saying, 'We are on the same ticket.' It was just like Gonski! Just like Gonski, they said they would be on the same ticket. The sad reality is that 83 per cent of this nation does not have Malcolm Turnbull's second-rate NBN.

I know it was a big campaign issue in the marginal seat of Moreton. I will quote from the Southern Star, one of my trusted local Quest newspapers. They said:

The National Broadband Network is a hot topic for Moreton voters, some of whom have voiced concern over how the rollout will proceed if there is a change of government.

And there is a quote from Rachael Zhong, who had a business in Rocklea. If you want to see what is going on in Moreton, check out the nbn co website. What does it say right now? Rachael from Rocklea was concerned about what would happen to the NBN if the coalition got in. What does nbn co say for Rocklea right now? It says:

The rollout of the NBN network has not started in this area.

This is despite Malcolm Turnbull's promise and despite the LNP's promise. My opponent, the LNP candidate, said in 2013:

We will get this out faster and cheaper than under the Government's plan—

that is, the Labor government's plan—

because we don't need to dig up every footpath to deliver the NBN to the home.

But what do we have now? No upgrade at all and no NBN. They are left with an out-of-date copper service centred in Mumbai or somewhere else, and we are still waiting.

Who should we blame for that, now the opportunity for innovation is gone, the opportunity for productivity is gone and the opportunity to sell jobs and services into Asia is gone? Malcolm Turnbull—that is who. Who should we blame? Him. In 2013 Malcolm Turnbull said his second-rate NBN would cost $29.5 billion. It is now up to $56 billion. I was an English teacher and not a maths teacher, but I think that is $26.5 billion extra. He said that everyone in Australia would have his second-rate NBN by now, but look at what is happening. He said it would only cost $600 per home, but now the cost is $1,600 per home. In 2013 Malcolm Turnbull sabotaged the rollout of the NBN. He estimated it would cost $55 million to patch up the NBN rollout, but instead the cost blowout is 1,300 per cent, to more than $780 million. So we have a hole of $1.4 billion. In the two years Malcolm Turnbull was the Minister for Communications he did not connect a single paying customer to his fibre-to-the-node network.

The Prime Minister's management of the NBN means the people in my electorate of Moreton are suffering. They are not happy with the LNP. Lee from Sunnybank Hills contacted my office about the slow implementation of the NBN. He says:

The volume of traffic on the internet has grown, particularly with the arrival of Netflix and other online media functions that are replacing TV broadcasting. Internet service providers now sell unlimited monthly volumes compared to, say, 50 to 100GB a month just three years ago.

Tim from Moorooka has also contacted my office. He says:

My family and I have recently moved to Moorooka from regional Queensland. We're loving the vibrancy of the community as well as the diversity of the culture on show. However, I was disappointed to find out that NBN was not yet available and was told they didn't know when it might be available.

That is despite the promises of my LNP opponent and despite the promises of the Prime Minister of Australia, Mr Malcolm Turnbull. Shame on him.

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