Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern and Remote Australia) Share this | Hansard source

It was $17 million. That is okay! Thanks, Senator Conroy. Only $17 million was absolutely wasted and it did not achieve a thing. If Mr Rudd wants to save some money, he should get rid of Senator Conroy. We could have saved $17 million and we could save ourselves a fair share of the $43 billion that is allegedly going to be spent on this NBN once Senator Conroy sorts out Telstra. Or so he thinks; I know who will end up sorting out whom, because we know that prior to the election Senator Conroy and Telstra were very, very close—almost as if they were holding hands. Remember where you got your $4.7 billion from, Senator Conroy.