Prime Minister Tony Abbott has repeated an unsubstantiated claim made by Malcolm Turnbull in October, in regards to the construction of the NBN in Tasmania.
| Abbott Dodges Repeated Tassie FTTP Questions |
“In general, Abbott did not directly address the issues being raised. For example, on the issue of how politically damaging the FTTP issue could be in Tasmania, Abbott claimed that the rollout of Labor’s National Broadband Network project in Tasmania “stopped in July” and “was not going to start again” because of the “utter incompetence and ineptitude” of Labor and the Greens.”
The fact of the matter is that the fibre rollout in Tasmania had not “stopped in July” – (and it remains to be seen if it has stopped even now) – and was indeed still well underway in October, despite claims from Turnbull that it had stopped:
| Unsubstantiated Claims Of Stopped Tasmanian NBN Rollout |
This shows – at the very least – that Turnbull is quite happy to speak out in the media about what he believes is the case, without truly confirming the veracity of his claims. It could even be just out-and-out deception.
Given Turnbull has just agreed to continue with FTTP trials in Tasmania, even the “not going to start again” statement is flat out incorrect.
The Coalition certainly have form on false NBN claims, and this is just another example.
Given this piece of infrastructure – (whatever form it finally takes) – is so important for the future of this nation, it is time that Abbott and Turnbull stop making things up to suit their political discourse and motivations.