LABOR’S AERIAL BROADBAND CABLES WILL BE AN EYE-SORE!
The Member for Berowra, Philip Ruddock MP today said that the Federal government made it perfectly clear that the Rudd Government is looking to bypass the objections of local residents and councils across Australia to roll out unsightly aerial cables under its $43 billion National Broadband Network proposal.
“It was now obvious that the Rudd Government would attempt to deploy as much aerial cabling as possible in order to cut costs,” Mr Ruddock said.
Optus believes that the NBN would cost $60 billion if cables were deployed underground or $33 billion if 70 per cent of the cabling was deployed underground.
“The Federal government makes no secret of their plans to amend existing laws to provide immunity from local and state government planning approval processes to expedite the roll out of aerial cables,” Philip Ruddock said.
“The Government admits that aerial cables are ‘faster and more cost effective’ to deploy than underground cables, yet refuses to reveal which cities and towns across Australia will get overhead cables as opposed to underground cables.
“Underground cables are the clear preference of residents and councils across the country, yet under Labor’s broadband plan hundreds of kilometres of aerial cables are set to be rolled out whether residents and councils want them or not,” Philip Ruddock said.