4th Feb 2021, 11:20 AM – Representatives Telecommunications Amendment (Infrastructure in New Developments) Bill 2020 - Second Reading - Keep motion unchanged

The majority voted in favour of a motion that the usual second reading motion remain unchanged. The usual second reading motion is that the bill be read a second time, which is parliamentary jargon for agreeing with the main idea of the bill. This vote occurred after Greenway MP Michelle Rowland (Labor) introduced the proposed amendment below.

Proposed amendment

That all words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:

"whilst not declining to give the bill a second reading, the House:

(1) notes:

(a) that despite the Coalition's promise to deliver a second-rate NBN for $29.5 billion, the cost is now forecast to be $57 billion;

(b) despite the Coalition promising every Australian would have access to a minimum NBN speed of 25 megabits per second by 2016, up to 238,000 premises in 2021 still cannot get this minimum speed;

(c) the shambles that is the deployment of HFC technology; and

(d) that after spending seven years and $51 billion on the NBN, the Coalition Government has begun an embarrassing backflip from copper to fibre; and

(2) calls on the Coalition Government to reign in its technological incompetence across every aspect of the NBN."