Minchin may stall NBN legislation
Summary: Shadow Minister for Communications, Nick Minchin, late yesterday threatened to hold up legislation required for the National Broadband Network roll-out unless the Labor party releases the initial NBN expert report.
Shadow Communications Minister Nick Minchin late yesterday threatened to hold up legislation required for the National Broadband Network roll-out unless the Labor party released the initial NBN expert report.
Minchin yesterday accused Communications Minister Stephen Conroy of being in contempt of the Senate for not producing the NBN expert panels' report covering the initial $4.7 billion plan, and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's report on the NBN proposals to the NBN Panel of Experts.
The Shadow Minister handed Conroy an ultimatum of 6:50pm yesterday to table the reports, threatening that unless they were revealed, consideration of any legislation relating to the new $43 billion NBN proposal would be postponed.
Conroy has maintained the stance that the government cannot release the documents due to commercially sensitive information it contained, likely relating to network infrastructure belonging to telco giants like Telstra and Optus.
"The government cannot and will not comply with this irresponsible ultimatum," Conroy said in a statement. "The Opposition continues to seek to opportunistically delay the roll-out of high-speed broadband to support Australia's future businesses and services, despite endorsing investment in economic infrastructure."
"The release of this commercially sensitive information by the government would be irresponsible," Conroy said. "Senator Minchin's behaviour is grossly irresponsible." Furthermore, Conroy added, Minchin's demands were hypocritical given he had withheld similar reports while in government during the Howard administration.
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Talkback
Conroy promised to released
Or is it that the report does show a winner but this did not align with his political goals/masters
Bad promise, tight spot.
He shouldnt have made the promised to release all the information in the first place, and instead promised to release a summary of the findings.
Either way, the report probably will show a winner, but the overall recommendation would be that none were viable. If that was not the recommendation of the expert panel one would have said something by now.
Of course there was a winner
However, if the government doesn't control the new NBN, how else can they enforce their suspension of freedom of speech with their top secret blacklist?
Most of the ISPs have proven the filter is a waste of time and money, but that won’t stop the lobby groups pushing for it to be mandatory if you sign up to the new 100 mbps connections. I can't wait til all Australian children are forced to learn Intelligent Design rather than Evolution at school!
ah the selective libertarian
They didn't speak out against the detention of asylum seekers which denied basic legal rights. They didn't make much of a fuss about the detention and execution of Australians overseas.
The fact is the Howard government stacked the film and literature classification board with church interests - banning more films for distribution than in any period of history.
Speaking of Intelligent Design - it was Brendan Nelson as education minister who proposed that it be taught in science classes.
But to the selective libertarian with amnesia it doesn't matter.
Hear hear
Free speech is democratic, not "libertarian"
Every Australian should be protesting about the lies we are being fed by Conroy and Rudd about their plan to filter the Net. Well meaning but technically ignorant people will listen to the Hollowmen spin about saving all the children, and foolishly will stop watching their kids when they are online.
Meanwhile the government will secretly put on the secret banned list whatever it wants to, with no public scrutiny or review. And of course they will look to collect votes from people like Davoe and Jason, who probably can't even spell "right to free speech" ;-)
and
Free speech is democratic, not "libertarian"
Conroy's report would show his ineptitude !
IMHO, that is bulldust. I reckon he has no worthwhile information to report, and that release of the documents will only confirm his inept handling of the NBN fiasco, and what he has to offer in the "expert report".
ineptitude?
it may seem like a fiasco to you, if you support telstra and their own arrogant approach means they had to show sol the door early and now suck up to the government. that was their own fault, a calculated gamble which backfired.
conroy said he would disclose the docs following the announcement of the wiiner and there hasn't been a winner, regardless of his ineptitude or not.
re ineptitude?