asked the Minister representing the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, in writing, on 12 September 2011:

In respect of a number of public statements made by the Minister, including on ABC's 7.30 on 26 June 2011, that the previous government had 18 'failed' broadband programs, (a) what were the names of these programs, and (b) on what basis did the Minister make these claims?

The Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy has provided the following answer to the honourable member's question:

In relation to your query, your own 'broadband briefing' on your website dated 15 September 2011 identifies 16 of the failed broadband plans. The two additional failed plans were Networking the Nation (1997) and the Expert Taskforce (2007).