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

In June we received over 80 submissions on the regulatory structure for the NBN, which my department’s specialist advisers as well as the expert panel are considering. In May I announced that proponents would have 12 weeks to consider the necessary network information before lodging proposals. On 7 August the government released final instruments setting out the network information that carriers are to provide for the NBN and the rules to safeguard the information. On 3 September I announced that the last of the network information requested from carriers was available to national broadband network proponents. Accordingly, proponents then had 12 weeks to consider the network information before lodging their proposals on 26 November 2008.

This is a major step forward in the government’s comprehensive plan to provide Australians with higher speed broadband services. Once proposals are received the expert panel will have two months to consider submissions before making a recommendation to government. Once the recommendation has been considered, the government will be in a position to make a formal announcement.

It is somewhat ironic that those opposite criticise the government’s NBN process, as they have no idea what side of the fence they are sitting on regarding this matter. The shadow minister originally called the process’s time lines ‘dangerously truncated and unrealistic’. That was the shadow minister. Yet only weeks later the flip-flopping shadow minister changed his position again to criticise the government for ‘time table overruns’, asking ‘Why has it taken so long?’ Even more embarrassing is that the backflip came after Mr Billson in a press statement on 22 May stated:

I have made it perfectly clear that I would not criticise the Minister—

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