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

For you. You had a majority and you lost an election. I wonder if they are connected. You still cannot get over the arrogance that you developed because you had a Senate majority. It cost you the election. The arrogance of your taking control of the Senate and misusing that control cost you the election. But you have not learned your lesson; you are at it again. You have not learned from the last three years.

The introduction of this motion provides another example of your willingness to abuse Senate powers. The opposition have failed to learn the lessons from Work Choices. They failed to learn that abuse of Senate powers in favour of their own narrow political interests is not in the interests of the Australian public. This sort of abuse that you are perpetrating again today is not in the interests of the Australian public. That is why you lost the last election.

The Rudd government has spent its first seven months setting in place the framework for Australia’s broadband future. The opposition are determined to spoil these foundations. This latest stunt is just another act of economic vandalism. The opposition want to set up a perennial broadband blockade. You were not content with ruining the broadband in this country for 11½ years. Now you want to try to do it from opposition.

The Senate does not need to inquire into the reasons that the government is rolling out a national broadband network. Just get out of your office and go for a walk in the streets in Perth, go to all those suburbs that I have visited in Perth and all over Australia, hold a public forum and stand there and explain to them why, after 11½ years, they still cannot even get DSL, never mind ADSL, VDSL or fibre. They still cannot get better than dial-up. Forty per cent of Perth has broadband. You are a disgrace. You had 11½ years, and 40 per cent of your home town has broadband. You are a disgrace. You have allowed Perth to suffer. There are only two cities worse off. The good news for you is that you are not at the bottom. Senator Birmingham, I am glad that you have turned up. Thirty-three per cent of Adelaide has broadband. After 11½ years—