Mitch Fifield (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

We know that those living in rural and regional areas often have the worst access to broadband services. The rollout plan shows our commitment to rural and regional Australia, with almost one million premises outside of major urban areas covered. Of the areas receiving upgrades to the fixed line network, more than 800,000 are outside of major urban areas, which is almost half of the total rollout in the fixed line footprint. An additional 128,000 premises in the bush will be upgraded with the fixed wireless rollout.

In terms of the fixed wireless network, a network neglected by Labor, we have more than tripled the number of premises passed since the election, going from 39,000 premises to 135,000 premises; and there are another 97,000 premises where the network is currently being built and another 128,000 premises which will see construction begin in the next 18 months. We are getting on with the job of delivering fast broadband for Australians, particularly those in rural and remote areas.