North Coast to wait longer and have less choice on Broadband

“…again dudded by city Labor interests…” North Coast Nationals Duty Senator Fiona Nash today said Federal Labor’s decision to axe the previous Government’s billion-dollar regional broadband contract would mean a longer wait and probably less choice for North Coast communities. “The Opel Broadband system, which was well on the way to success, was to deliver wireless fast internet connections, especially to communities that don’t currently get broadband,” Senator Nash said. “The problems with Labor’s rival plan is that it will take much longer to implement because it needs much more physical infrastructure; it is more expensive to the taxpayer; and it is likely to entrench Telstra’s monopoly as the sole provider for rural communities.” “During Senate Estimates, we quizzed Labor Communications Minister Stephen Conroy about the timeframe and locations for the Labor broadband rollout to regional Australia but he was unable to answer – If the Minister doesn’t understand Labor communications policy, who does?” Senator Nash said North Coast Labor MPs Justine Elliot and Janelle Saffin should not be able to remain silent while their constituents are ‘again dudded by city Labor interests’. “Labor is already moving to raid the $2billion Communications Fund which would have guaranteed investment in new telecommunications technologies for regional Australia,” Senator Nash said. “Now the Rudd Government has cancelled the OPEL contract which would have ensured 99 per cent of Australians had access reliable and affordable high speed broadband. “Thousands of North Coast internet users will now be waiting for the best part of a decade before they are able to access high speed broadband. It also remains unclear how much Labor’s plan will cost the consumer. To interview Senator Fiona Nash, please call 0428 864 845

Source:

Post Comment

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Enter the code shown above in the box below

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail