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

I rise to speak on a subject of great interest and importance to my constituents in Hume: telecommunications. Indeed, I speak on this topic more than any other in this place. When this government was elected just over a year ago, the Minister for Communications, my colleague Malcolm Turnbull, made a decision to prioritise fast broadband to areas of greatest need with the right technology for that particular location. Recently I was able to announce the NBN rollout for the Wollondilly shire in my electorate and that by 2016 it will be joining the superfast era. Planning meetings between the council and NBN Co have commenced in this area, and the key message for all businesses and households in Wollondilly is that they will be entering the superfast broadband era—this is for all of them. The NBN technology mix for this area will be a combination of fibre to the premise, fibre to the node and fixed wireless, reflecting the range of needs in the region. However, the important message is that no matter what the technology mix people will be able to video-stream online, participate in online learning and access internet services with ease day to day.

The reason I am standing here today and talking about this good news for the Wollondilly shire is that with this government we finally have an NBN that is doing what it was intended to do. We have a government that is turning around the disasters and poor decisions of the previous government and can see where the priorities should lie. We are making good on our pledge to deliver the NBN sooner and more affordably for taxpayers and consumers. For the residents of Wollondilly, this is what I have been fighting for. In the very short term, I am looking at ways I can help businesses and residents in the Wollondilly shire who are struggling with poor telecommunications services.

I have arranged for Telstra representatives to visit the area to discuss individual service issues this Friday. I have written to residents in Werombi, Orangeville, Theresa Park, Mount Hunter, the Oaks and Oakdale to let them know that Telstra will be in the area. Residents in these areas will be able to call my office and make an appointment to sit down with a Telstra representative and discuss the problems they are having. We have had a strong response to this offer. I am doing this for the residents in these areas and I know there is a real sense of frustration with the services they currently have. Telstra have committed to listen, investigate individual concerns and see what they can do to fix the problem, and I thank them for this. Good-quality telecommunications services are critical in my electorate and across Australia. Today I am pleased to be able to talk about the huge leaps forward we are making in the Wollondilly area.