Conroy cons Wide Bay over NBN broadband roll out
4th April, 2012
Federal Member for Wide Bay, Warren Truss, today said that the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Stephen Conroy, is trying to con people in Wide Bay into thinking that they will have access to fibre to the home broadband by 2015.Commenting on claims by Senator Conroy that some Wide Bay residents will have access to NBN wireless or satellite by 2015, Mr Truss said, “the fact remains that Wide Bay was completely by-passed in last Thursday’s announcement, which listed the communities where fibre construction would begin by 2015,” Mr Truss said.
“According to that announcement, not one home, business or community in the Fraser Coast, South Burnett, Cooloola Coast or Noosa areas will be connected to fibre optic broadband until the latter part of this decade.
“Senator Conroy’s smokescreen about other forms of pre-existing broadband technology being delivered to Wide Bay, which have been adopted by NBN Co, are an admission that Wide Bay will miss out on fibre optic connections until well after 2015.
“The 78 premises in Wide Bay that Senator Conroy says have already been connected to the NBN, are using pre-NBN Co technology - a pre-existing satellite,” Mr Truss said.
“Indeed, in an answer to a Parliamentary Question on Notice circulated yesterday, the Minister confirms that NBN Co has not even set a date for the roll out of fibre optic cable anywhere in Wide Bay. All we know is that it will not start until after 2015.”
The same response to the Question on Notice indicates that Cooran, Pomona, Cooroy, Gympie, Rainbow Beach, Tin Can Bay, Maryborough and Murgon are likely to receive fibre optic connections at some time in the future, but Tiaro, Imbil, Kilkivan and Cherbourg will only be serviced by fixed wireless broadband. Others will only ever receive a satellite service. The response fails to provide any information as to how broadband will be delivered to Noosa and Peregian Beach.
“The time line for the delivery of the NBN keeps on blowing out as does its projected cost,” Mr Truss said.
“Labor promised to deliver high speed broadband at the 2007 election. It failed to do so. Labor promised to deliver high speed broadband at the 2010 election. It has failed to do so. At the rate Labor is going, people in Wide Bay will have to wait at least two more elections, until after 2016, before they have any hope of accessing high speed broadband.
“When Labor came to office they cancelled the previous Coalition Government’s OPEL contract, which would have already delivered high speed wireless broadband to Wide Bay. Despite Labor’s NBN costing tens of billions of dollars more than the OPEL contract, people in the Fraser Coast, South Burnett, Cooloola Coast or Noosa areas will have to wait an extra decade before they can access high speed broadband.”
