NBN is no Snowy Mountains scheme: Turnbull

James Riley
Monday, 20 September 2010 13:21

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

Opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull says the Snowy Mountains Scheme was given "rigorous analysis and public debate" over several years before construction began, and could not be compared to the National Broadband Network project as Julia Gillard claims.

Responding to Ms Gillard's Light on the Hill speech in Bathurst at the weekend, Mr Turnbull pilloried Government's claim that there was an equivalence between the iconic nation-building hydro-electricity scheme and the broadband roll-out.

And he rejected the Prime Minister's assertion that the Snowy Mountains Scheme - which was established in 1949 - had been attacked by the Liberal Party. By the time the Federal parliament authorized construction to start, it had the support of both sides of politics, Mr Turnbull said.

"Unlike the NBN, the Snowy scheme was preceded by lengthy and detailed public discussion and debate," he said "A joint Commonwealth and State Snowy River Committee was established to investigate the financial viability of the proposal."

"The process took several years and produced a number of reports. The cost of the project was thoroughly analysed as were the benefits to electricity generation and irrigation."

Calling Labor's an "eyes wide shut" approach to building the NBN, Mr Turnbull said the broadband network had not been subject to adequate debate, and that Government had not made the cost-benefit case to justify its construction.

"Whatever the economic or environmental impact of the Snowy scheme may look like today, the fact is that when the Federal Parliament authorised its construction, with the support of both sides of politics, it had been the subject of a rigorous analysis and public debate before construction was commenced," he said.

If the Government wanted to use the Snowy Mountains Scheme as the benchmark for a successful nation building project, Mr Turnbull said it should necessarily subject the broadband roll-out to the same level of scrutiny as that scheme.