Page 3378 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 23 September 2015
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looking. As the new Turnbull government lifts its language around being a 21st century government I call on the federal government to commit to a clear and comprehensive NBN rollout program for Canberra and deliver on this rhetoric. New communications minister Mitch Fifield will certainly have his work cut out for him to address these structural issues which obviously were neglected by Malcolm Turnbull who, although having the brief to destroy the NBN, at least rescued it somewhat from the former Prime Minister—but its new form remains a slower, more expensive, inferior infrastructure for our future. Canberrans deserve better.
MR DOSZPOT (Molonglo) (11.04): I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak on this motion today, and I thank Ms Fitzharris for acknowledging the importance of the national broadband network rollout across Canberra and more broadly Australia wide. I am not quite sure if I thank her for some of the quite misleading statements regarding just how the broadband started and what impact it had under Labor, but I shall cover that in more detail. It is a fantastic investment in digital infrastructure, and when the rollout is completed the national broadband will have long-term and wide-reaching benefits.
Under the coalition NBN model access to high speed internet will be provided through utilising a suite of technologies including fibre, fixed wireless and satellite, depending on where you live. The NBN will provide endless possibilities for the education sector, the disability sector and more notably the health sector, to name a few. Importantly, under this federal government rollout of the NBN there is potential for further ICT job growth in the ACT and surrounds, as well as supporting education opportunities for all Canberrans.
The rollout of the NBN is expected to be completed by 2019 and will cost tens of billions dollars less than Labor’s original NBN plan. As of 28 August this year, there are 19,872 fibre to the premises connections activated across the ACT and many suburbs with broadband services available, including areas in Bonner, Civic, Crace, Deakin and Queanbeyan, which are some of the areas served by fibre access node sites. There are currently 11,700 premises where construction is underway and a further 56,900 premises will be completed as part of the rollout plan by December 2016.
The coalition’s plan is to ensure that the NBN rollout is faster and cheaper, resulting in much lower prices for consumers. Household broadband plans under the coalition will be $66 per month compared to at least $90 per month under Labor. Families and businesses will enjoy superfast broadband at a fraction of the cost of what it would have been under Labor. They have given a commitment to utilise highly effective smart technologies in the delivery of a high speed broadband network service which will ensure that Australia does not fall behind in the worldwide digital revolution.
We agree it is important. What is even more important is that the coalition government will provide the NBN to all Australians sooner and at less cost to taxpayers than was on offer under Labor. As I have said, I am pleased to be able to stand and speak about the importance of the national broadband network and the magnificent work that the coalition government is undertaking in transforming the NBN rollout plan to offer the most affordable, easily accessible in high speed broadband network to all Australians, including the residents of Canberra.
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