House debates

Tuesday, 1 March 2011

Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (National Broadband Network Measures — Access Arrangements) Bill 2010

Consideration in Detail

8:51 pm

Photo of Malcolm TurnbullMalcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Communications and Broadband) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I respond to the minister by noting that neither he nor the member for Melbourne, despite my invitation, has been able to nominate one document or one class of documents that would be disclosable or discoverable under the Freedom of Information Act by the NBN after these amendments are enacted. They have not been able to do that, because there are not any. Every document of the NBN is in relation to ‘commercial activities’, which is defined to mean activities carried out on a commercial basis. It does not carry on activities, one hopes, other than on a commercial basis. So this amendment is a solemn farce. The minister says that the member for Wentworth thinks he knows best. I am inviting him and the member for Melbourne, whose amendment it is, to correct me and to demonstrate the types of documents that will be disclosable under the Freedom of Information Act following the passage of this bill as amended in these amendments.

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