Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern and Remote Australia) Share this | Hansard source

I am not making this up, Senator McLucas. Have a look at the estimates Hansard. The government is not getting a cent in returns from the investment in Tasmania because NBN Co. is giving away for free its part of the $43 billion investment. It is typical of Labor Party business economics that you spend all this money, give the service away for free and then have the hide to tell Australians that the government going to make a profit out of this and give a return on the investment of $43 billion.

It has become clearer and clearer as we ask questions about the NBN at estimates and other committees that the government will not get any return at all on their investment in Tasmania until, at the very earliest, July next year—another nine months away. Until then, generous old NBN Co, which is the Australian taxpayer, is simply giving away its investment for zero return. It is no wonder that those few people who have signed up to this NBN Co. in Tasmania have done so—they are not being charged for it. They are paying the internet service provider a fee, but they are not paying NBN Co. anything for the fibre rollout. That is a disgrace of the first order. I am sure that the Auditor-General in future reports will continue to look at this and he will report unfavourably on how you can spend that sort of money in Tasmania yet give away your commercial expertise and the network for no return at all. (Time expired)