BY JESSICA ROUSE
HUNTER residents were assured yesterday
that if they have already received the Coalition's fibre-to-the-node
connection, they won't be left behind when Labor's fibre-to-the-premises connection
is rolled out.
Labor's latest National Broadband
Network policy pledges fibre-to-the-node connections will be stopped once
contracts are completed, with all connections transitioning to
fibre-to-the-premises.
Labor Candidate for Shortland Pat Conroy said HUNTER
residents who need the connection will get it.
“We will be increasing the number of households who get
fibre-to-the-premises by $2 million which means there’s a very good chance that
Hunter residents will get fibre-to-the-premises. We can’t give a guarantee,
some Hunter residents may be better off with a wireless solution”.
Labor is promising to deliver the initial NBN rollout by
2022 at a cost of $57 billion, a figure which has nearly doubled from an original
estimate of $29.5 billion under the current government.
“To put it simply, under Malcom Turnbull the NBN has
doubled in cost and has delivered a speed of less than a quarter of what was
promised and that’s why fibre’s so important; you do it once, you do it to the
home and you do it fibre and that’s Labor’s commitment”.
Mr Conroy said Labor currently has no timetable for the
transition of node to premises for customers.
