Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I know the minister is aware that few issues galvanise rural communities more than lack of mobile phone access in mobile phone black spots. In my electorate, whether you are in Bigga, Wamboin or, indeed, Grabben Gullen, this is a major issue and it galvanises these rural communities. I will highlight that between 2007 and 2013 we made very little progress on this topic, despite the fact that during the course of the Labor government there were commitments of up to $90 billion for fibre into regions that already had HFC, as we have heard earlier today. So we took a promise to the 2013 election to invest $100 million to boost mobile phone coverage in outer metropolitan, regional and rural areas. I ask: when will the coalition deliver on that promise, what has community response been to the Mobile Black Spot Program, and when will communities start to benefit from the program?

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