Kevin Rudd Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition
2:25 pm
My question is again to the Prime Minister. I refer again to this leaked email marked ‘in-confidence’ from the office of the communications minister, which directs public servants to urgently prepare media information kits for today’s broadband announcement for 40 priority government-held marginal seats. Prime Minister, isn’t it a fact that this email demonstrates that your broadband policy has been prepared primarily as a pre-election bandaid to protect coalition marginal seats?
John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
The answer to that is no. The benefits of this announcement, as will be demonstrated in the weeks and months ahead, will be spread evenly throughout the entire country. The evidence of that is to be found in the fact that, as a result of this announcement, 99 per cent of all of the Australian community—and I do not think either side of politics is ever going to represent 99 per cent of the Australian electorate—will enjoy a very fast broadband in two years time. We will not be doing this at the expense of the future superannuation of our soldiers and our Federal Police. I have just been handed a map of an electorate. I think the name of this electorate is Griffith. I have also been handed a map of the electorate of Ballarat.
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition
Ms Gillard interjecting
John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
The map shows that one, two, three, four, five areas in the electorate of Ballarat are going to get the benefit, starting this year—starting almost immediately. Here it is—
Ms Catherine King Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Treasury
Ms King interjecting
John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
That red on the map is good. Normally I think green is pretty good, but red means it is an ADSL2+ turn-on. That means the member for Ballarat is going to do very well out of this. The Leader of the Opposition has already done very well out of this, but we have not ignored him. We have a map for him. We have a map for everybody because this is a government for all of us.
David Hawker Speaker
The next call goes to the government side. The Manager of Opposition Business?
Anthony Albanese Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the House
Mr Speaker, I ask that the Prime Minister table the maps from which he was reading.
John Howard Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister
I am happy to do so.