Cathy McGowan (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Communications. Minister, as you know, mobile phone telecommunications infrastructure is essential throughout Australia but particularly in regional Australia. Could you please give me an update on the mobile phone black spot program and how it is progressing in Indi?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for her question. I have to give her full marks for a very good try and full marks for audacity. As the honourable member knows, in the dark six years of Labor government, which have been well chronicled on the ABC—and this is one of the things that were left out of The Killing Seasonnot one cent was spent by Labor on dealing with mobile phone black spots. There was so much other material of course that you cannot really blame the producers.

Ms Owens interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Parramatta is warned.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So under the Howard government we spent money on remediating mobile phone black spots, and under the Abbott government we have done so again. The honourable member will be pleased to know that she and other honourable members do not have long to wait because, thanks to the diligence of the parliamentary secretary, the member for Bradfield, and hard work with state governments, the telcos and other stakeholders, tomorrow there will be a very significant announcement about the mobile phone black spot program that will show yet again that the Abbott government, unlike Labor, delivers for people in regional Australia.