Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

The National Broadband Network will deliver high-speed broadband services to 98 per cent of Australia’s homes and businesses—a significant number of them in regional Australia. The Rudd government understands that access to broadband services is essential for the long-term prosperity of our regions. It will enable new services and drive productivity. I note the comments made by Senator Barnaby Joyce today relating to Telstra’s HFC upgrade. He stated:

You can bet in regional areas they’ll leave us alone and let us wither on the vine.

That is precisely why the NBN is so important and the government remains committed to building it. Telstra’s announcement is purely about serving metropolitan Australia. That is exactly why the former government failed so miserably in communications and broadband policy—because they were not interested in all of Australia. (Time expired)