Senator Conroy says "I'm not into opting into child porn"

David Heath
Monday, 28 June 2010 23:13

Opinion and Analysis

The hypocrisy is breathtaking.  After listening to two years of unambiguous opposition to the Internet filter proposal, Senator Conroy invariably falls back on the paedophile defence.  Shame on you Sir, shame on you.

This morning, Senator Conroy, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, visited Neuroscience Australia to announce a proposal to use the Nintendo Wii as a remote rehabilitation device for stroke patients via the National Broadband Network (NBN).

"Stroke patients in regional or remote areas find it difficult to access rehabilitation services," said lead researcher Dr Penelope McNulty from Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA).

"This project will assess the feasibility of offering high-quality, remotely-monitored rehabilitation where access to therapy is currently restricted or non-existent."

As part of the event, Sen. Conroy undertook a media doorstop to answer a few journalists' questions.  Judging by the positioning of the microphone in the shot, it would appear that the principal questioner is from the ABC. 

The transcript of the Q&A session is both enlightening and depressing.  Questions asked of the Minister homed in on two topics - the recent agreement between the NBN and Telstra and the proposed Internet filter.

The transcript below focuses on the filter questions (time stamps as they appear in the video - watch it before continuing) the text has been cleansed for clarity only; content and meaning have not been modified.

00:00
Q: Steve, we've seen a change in Prime Minister, are we going to see a change in the Internet web filter policy?

Conroy: We have got an election commitment to deliver.

Q: The Greens are saying it's been shelved though'¦

Conroy: I'm saying to you, we have an election commitment. Just because Scott Ludlam says it's been shelved, doesn't make it true.

More on the next page.