Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ryde Joinery is a small business in my electorate in the suburb of Punchbowl that provides award-winning interior fittings services across Australia. Ryde Joinery is a local success story, and I have to pay tribute to the owner, Justin Patane, and his family for their hard work and commitment to their craft. In looking at the factory, you would see it in terms of blue-collar jobs—a whole lot of work being done with different forms of timber in putting together chairs and different fittings that then find their way to local clubs and restaurants. Absolute precision is required with everything they build.

But, while people look at it very much as a blue-collar workplace, the truth is the business is suffering directly from the slow internet speeds that it is receiving. All of this work that it does is reliant on the downloading of detailed plans. The failure of the government to deliver decent internet speeds in the suburb of Punchbowl creates a very real challenge for the business. Right through to tasks like receiving phone calls from current and potential clients, downloading plans and order specifications, or even calling out to get technical supports—in every way this business is receiving a quality of service where anyone would think they should be able to get better. This is because Ryde Joinery does not have access to Labor's National Broadband Network and instead relies on last century's copper wire for its telecommunications. As a result of this, Justin is losing customers, potential work projects and, importantly, income to grow his business. This is a problem not just for small businesses like Ryde Joinery but for schools, community organisations, sports clubs and households throughout our local area. On my visit I said, 'Can we have a look at Speedtest.net just to see what actual internet speed he is getting' so that I could verify it for myself. The speed came up at 0.05 megabytes per second. Under a series of different providers, when you max out your data and they reduce you to a slower speed, it is still faster than what he is getting in normal times when he is still within his limits.

I am proud to represent one of the most diverse electorates in Australia—a part of Sydney where the whole world has come to live. In our community the internet helps people make a living, stay in contact with friends and family overseas, better understand their neighbours and educate themselves on issues that matter to them. With slow speeds and regular disruption, these outcomes are doomed to failure. Under Labor, more than 100,000 homes and businesses were scheduled to get fibre-to-the-premises NBN by the end of 2016. Up to 93 per cent of Australians would eventually have access to this cutting-edge broadband. Instead Australian businesses like Ryde Joinery have to make do with the Abbott-Turnbull government's slower, more expensive 'NBN lite'. Under this government, not even— (Time expired)