Peter McGauran (Gippsland, National Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

Or the back of the union ticket—that is an even smaller space to scribble your ramblings on telecommunications. Instead, you have got to have a broadband policy that is multidimensional and keeps ahead of the game in a sector such as telecommunications. The government’s incentive programs, such as HiBIS and Broadband Connect, have resulted in over a million premises gaining access to terrestrial services and over 250,000 customers taking up these subsidised services. The programs have resulted in increasing competition amongst providers, and over 1,500 exchanges have been enabled for ADSL.

The Labor Party’s policy is a sham: it does not work, it lacks detail, it has been ridiculed by the industry as being technically deficient, and it is financially reckless. The government, on the other hand, has the building blocks in place. We have invested heavily for many years in rural and regional areas and we will continue to do so. We will enlist the private sector to the greatest extent possible and will shortly be making announcements that provide the way forward for broadband connections in this country.

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