Guy Barnett (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

If that is not true, I will accept that. You say that he lives in Hobart full time. Thank you, Senator Conroy. Then we have Greg McCann from Wynyard, Alison Terry from Perth, Western Australia and Jean-Pascal Beaufret has just been appointed on 27 August 2010. I did not see any public announcement about the appointment of Mr Beaufret. I know it has been in the public arena, but there was no announcement and I wonder why. Why is the registered office of NBN Tasmania based in Melbourne at the head office of NBN Co. Ltd on level 43, 60 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne? Why is the previously registered office in Canberra? This is meant to be a Tasmanian entity and Tasmanian joint venture discussions are meant to have started in August last year. It seems now that the federal government says it will go it alone in Tasmania without the support and equity involvement of the Tasmanian government.

How much money has been invested to date in the joint venture—firstly, by the federal government, secondly, by the Tasmanian government and, thirdly, by Aurora Energy? What arrangements did they undertake? What contracts did they sign? What terms and conditions applied to those contracts? Come clean, spill the beans, put it out into the public arena. Do not be closeted and set up another secret confidentiality agreement with these key parties. Come clean and tell the Tasmanian public and the Australian public what has happened. This collapse is clearly an embarrassment. The abandonment of the joint venture is an embarrassment to both governments not just the federal government.

The federal government says now it will negotiate contracts and arrangements directly with Aurora Energy for them to undertake work. I would like to know what terms and conditions will apply to those contracts. If they have already been signed, please reveal them. If they have not been, we would like to know what arrangements will be put in place with Aurora Energy. The minister here will no doubt be able to stand up, respond to that, and come clean and tell the Senate and the members of the public. That is what we would like. We would like that rather than this cloak of secrecy around the NBN rollout.

I would like to know: what is the cost of the NBN rollout in Tasmania to date? It is on the public record that I have asked that question and I cannot get a response from the minister or the government. What is the cost to the Tasmanian taxpayers and Australian taxpayers for the rollout to date? What is the cost for the rollout to be completed and the equity injection to date? These questions must be answered. We know there has been a $37 million contract signed for the NBN stage 1, but that is only part of it and the minister needs to come clean.