Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is again to the Prime Minister. I refer again to this leaked email marked ‘in-confidence’ from the office of the communications minister, which directs public servants to urgently prepare media information kits for today’s broadband announcement for 40 priority government-held marginal seats. Prime Minister, isn’t it a fact that this email demonstrates that your broadband policy has been prepared primarily as a pre-election bandaid to protect coalition marginal seats?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The answer to that is no. The benefits of this announcement, as will be demonstrated in the weeks and months ahead, will be spread evenly throughout the entire country. The evidence of that is to be found in the fact that, as a result of this announcement, 99 per cent of all of the Australian community—and I do not think either side of politics is ever going to represent 99 per cent of the Australian electorate—will enjoy a very fast broadband in two years time. We will not be doing this at the expense of the future superannuation of our soldiers and our Federal Police. I have just been handed a map of an electorate. I think the name of this electorate is Griffith. I have also been handed a map of the electorate of Ballarat.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Gillard interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The map shows that one, two, three, four, five areas in the electorate of Ballarat are going to get the benefit, starting this year—starting almost immediately. Here it is—

Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Treasury) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms King interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Ballarat is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That red on the map is good. Normally I think green is pretty good, but red means it is an ADSL2+ turn-on. That means the member for Ballarat is going to do very well out of this. The Leader of the Opposition has already done very well out of this, but we have not ignored him. We have a map for him. We have a map for everybody because this is a government for all of us.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The next call goes to the government side. The Manager of Opposition Business?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I ask that the Prime Minister table the maps from which he was reading.

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am happy to do so.