Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Many of my constituents continue to struggle to access broadband internet. The age and standard of much of the infrastructure means that services in my electorate are limited, even if they are available. My father helped build the Miller telephone exchange in the 1960s. It is that very same exchange that still services the area today, and it has been at capacity for some years. The simple reason is that upgrades were deferred, pending the eventual rollout of the national broadband network. Consequently, the response many of my constituents get when requesting a connection is that it is full and that for some years they have not been willing to invest the money needed for the upgrade.

One of my constituents, Dr Nilofur Ali, is a local physician who has a practice based in Casula. She actually lives in Middleton Grange, also in the electorate of Werriwa, and is unable to access an internet connection at her residence that would allow her to complete important work remotely and phone into international medical professional conferences from home. While living only a few blocks from a street that does have access to the NBN, she has to drive to her surgery to access the internet. This is also the case for her daughter, who is currently studying at the University of Sydney. She struggles to do research and often worries about achieving deadlines for online submissions because the internet is, simply, down.

Dr Ali is by no means the only constituent that has contacted me since July. Chris Petrou contacted me this week. He cannot access even basic ADSL and as a result is paying up to $90 a month for a less reliable mobile broadband connection. It is understandable why he feels at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to joining the 'connected world'.

Many people do not have the luxury of high-speed internet at their workplace, and participating in education, employment and so many other important facets of modern life is a real struggle as a result. There are many cases like this, and it is no wonder that many residents of south-west Sydney are feeling like second-class citizens, waiting for the broadband rollout that has been deferred again and again.

Technology now plays a central role in education. A good-quality internet is essential to many young families. Many couples have moved to the south-west of Sydney, attracted by more affordable housing and the excellent and committed teachers in our local public schools.

Last week, I was fortunate enough to attend Casula Public School to recognise Daisy Millpark, a student from my electorate, who was selected as the upper primary runner-up in the Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards this year. These awards have been running for 32 years. This year, there were 11,766 poems submitted by schoolchildren from all over the country. The award was started in 1983 with just 300 entries.

Daisy's poem is extremely moving and demonstrates extraordinary talent and wisdom. It is about Daisy's grandmother and expresses perfectly the emotion she feels and the love she has for her grandmother. As I read Daisy's poem, I could readily imagine the circumstances she wrote about. The language and form she uses are highly emotive, and the poem has a fantastic lyrical beauty. It opens:

Hands like prunes that grasp you tightly,

A beaming smile whenever she sees you,

Old as the earth, old as the temple of Delphi,

And sometimes dotty.

Singing my song all day long

Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do,

I hold her tight and search her eyes.

This is great literature, and it is what poetry is all about. Daisy's recognition by receiving a Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Award is a hugely prestigious achievement for her schoolteachers and her parents but especially Daisy herself. It was really wonderful to meet Daisy and her parents.

Her classmate Vicky Su also received a commendation in this award. The talents of these students were fostered and supported by their teacher, Michael Davis, whose outstanding efforts were recently recognised at the 2016 Ultimo principals network awards. I congratulate Daisy and Vicky and the entire Casula Public School community and their principal, Robyn Evans, for the wonderful work that they do with our children.