Stephen Jones (Whitlam, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Services, Territories and Local Government) Share this | Hansard source

No, I do want to address that. Although everybody is universally saying that there is not a cent in this budget for the continuation of the mobile phone blackspot program, we have a minister who bears the title but doesn't do the work of a regional communications minister. She is seen missing, position vacant, but bears the title of Minister for Regional Communications. She said on 23 May this year—the date is important—a couple of weeks after the budget: 'In September I'll have a new wave of investment ready to go.' So my question to the minister is this: Where is the money? Is the money in the budget? Is the money somewhere hidden in the communication portfolio? Is it included somewhere in the decisions made but not yet announced? Is it a secret that they're not willing to share with the member for Grey or any of the other regional members around the country? Is it somewhere hidden in the contingency fund? The people of Australia deserve to know. The people of regional Australia deserve to know. If the minister is right in saying, 'In September there'll be a new wave of investment ready to go,' where's the money? Where's the money, Minister? The people of Australia deserve to know.

Whilst I'm interrogating comments—helpful or otherwise—that have been made by senior members of the executive, I'd like the minister to tell us whether he agrees with comments that were made by the member for Maranoa and cabinet minister, Mr Littleproud, who said that the reason that there is no extension of the mobile phone blackspot program—they don't seem to be able to agree with each other, one cabinet minister with another, on this issue—is that the mobile network operators weren't going to play ball. So the fault is all that of the mobile network operators. Does the minister agree with the other minister, his cabinet colleague, that the reason that there is no money in the budget is that the mobile phone companies won't play ball with your government? Is that a correct statement? Is that a statement of government policy? Or is it the truth that on this issue you are as confused about their policy as the member for Grey is confused about the history of this program, and that you don't have a policy? It matters, Mr Deputy Speaker Howarth. You may be aware that there's a by-election going on at the moment, and in an electorate like Braddon, which has 110 mobile phone blackspots registered on the government's own database, they've built nine. So there are 101-odd to go, yet these guys are saying, 'Job done.' In Longman there are 29 blackspots and five built. (Time expired)

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