Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

As I was saying with regard to the Rudd Labor government’s high-speed fibre network, we announced the expert panel 48 hours ago and it has been given a time frame. We will seek contributions from the public about the specifications for what should be the tender documents, and that process will close on 30 March. The panel will then assess the relevant submissions and issue the specification documents. There will then be a three- to four-month period when proposals will be considered, because this government—unlike the previous government—is committed to ensuring proper process. We are committed to ensuring proper process, not a rorted process like those opposite were engaged in. We are not running into the cabinet room getting out maps of Australia, via electorates, putting them on the cabinet table and saying, ‘Oh, my goodness, we’d better make sure there is a tower there.’ Do you remember that particular high public policy debate you had in the cabinet room, Senator Minchin: ‘We’ve got to have a tower here’? There is no rorting of the process; we are having an open and transparent process. Advice from the probity officer says that commitments under the USFTA have to be followed in seeking— (Time expired)