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

I do not blame him for wanting the public of Australia not to know about the Liberal's policy, because Citigroup says it is $16.7 billion—

Senator Joyce interjecting—

and that is on budget, Barnaby: $16.7 billion. And the report says that regional Australians will be worse off. Here is a direct quote:

By implementing a market-driven approach to Broadband, the Coalition Policy risks the possibility of skewing telecommunications infrastructure investment and competition towards densely populated areas as is the case today.

'Densely populated areas'!

It also says:

We are concerned the need for the private sector to generate commercial returns will continue to limit broadband development in regional areas.

Further, it says:

The rapid speed demand growth observed in the past indicates that demand in Australia is likely to exceed the capabilities of what the coalition plan can deliver sooner rather than later, requiring nationwide upgrades to keep up.

In other words, when you finish the policy in 2018 or 2019 if you are lucky, it will already be obsolete. They did not finish there.

Fibre to the node is—

and I want to make sure we all hear this clearly—

not an upgrade path to fibre to the home. If the Coalition Policy is implemented it could simply delay an eventual national fibre-to-the-home build.

It is not just 'quick and dirty'; it is deceitful to try to pretend that they are building a better network when they know they will have to replace it before they start building it.

Mr Turnbull keeps talking about New Zealand. New Zealand started building a fibre-to-the-node broadband policy. They started to build but do you know what happened? The conservatives were elected in New Zealand and halfway through the build they decided it was not good enough, and that they had to build fibre-to-the-home. So in New Zealand they abandoned fibre-to-the-node and are building a fibre-to-the-home broadband plan. It goes on and on and on.

But people are not fooled by those opposite when it comes to broadband. Let me talk about some of the regional towns that are currently receiving—today—the national broadband network. I will let you know where some of them are because it is obvious from those opposite that they do not talk to people out there in regional Australia, otherwise they would know the people are currently using it. We have, in New South Wales towns like Black Springs, Clarence, Hampton, Rydal, Arkell, Clear Creek, Dark Corner, Fosters Valley, Rockley, Upper Turon, Millthorpe, Neville, Newnes, Glen Davis, Portland, Toobong, Gumble, Baldry, Bogan Gate, Bellbrook, and I could keep going on and on in New South Wales. I have covered only two electorates.