Press Conference - Jerrabomberra, New South Wales

KRISTY MCBAIN, MINISTER FOR REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND TERRITORIES: Good morning. It's fantastic to join you from beautiful Jerrabomberra in the mighty Eden-Monaro this morning, and I'm joined by my colleague, Minister Michelle Rowland, the Minister for Communications, Margot Sachse, who's the President of Jerrabomberra Residents Association and a small business owner, and NBN Co reps as well.

 

We know that connectivity is no longer a nice‑to‑have in our community, it is an absolute necessity.  The upgrades that the Albanese Labor Government are doing across the country, and especially across regional Australia will make a huge difference to small business owners like Margot, but also make a difference to our entire communities.

 

Across Eden-Monaro more than 16,000 premises have the ability to upgrade to fibre to the premises. Across regional Australia there are 660,000 community connections that can take place, which is part of the 1.5 million people across Australia in its entirety.

 

It is so important for regional Australia to be able to have good connectivity. We want to be able to grow our businesses, we want to be able to stay in touch with family and friends, and we want to be able to make studying online easier, but most importantly for us, those connections to essential services take place via communications. Whether that's telehealth services, whether that's phone appointments with specialists, we rely on it so much across regional Australia, and that's why I'm so incredibly proud that the Albanese Labor Government is so invested in regional communications.

 

MICHELLE ROWLAND, MINISTER FOR COMMUNICATIONS: Thanks so much, Minister, and it's a real delight to be here in Eden-Monaro; somewhere that has experienced, unfortunately, the shortcomings of a copper NBN under the previous government. But we are turning that around. And here in Jerrabomberra there are some 1,500 premises who will be able to access full fibre NBN connections. That means greater speeds, lower latency, better quality overall, but also, as I'm sure Margot will explain, when it rains, you are not susceptible to that downtime that unfortunately is experienced by those consumers.

 

It's great to be here in Eden-Monaro with someone who is understands the importance of connectivity, and the way in which the Albanese Government is investing in regional Australia.

 

We have hit an incredible milestone. There are 2 million premises who are now ready to connect across Australia to full fibre access – and half a million of those are in New South Wales. This is great to see, and this fibre upgrade complements the other work we are doing across the NBN technologies, including nearly half a billion invested in upgrading the Fixed Wireless Network, and a new Sky Muster Plus Premium product to ensure that we have uncapped and unmetered usage available for those regional and remote users of the NBN satellite product.

 

 Overall, we are creating a better NBN, and it's not for its own sake: it's for people like Margot, people who run small businesses, who need the benefits of connectivity in order to conduct their everyday lives, to interact with government, and of course, reap the benefits of e-commerce.

 

So thank you so much, Margot, for being here. I know that Kristy McBain has been a tireless advocate ever since she's been a candidate here in Eden-Monaro, and it's great that this is coming to fruition for residents and small businesses like yourself. Thanks, Margot.

 

MARGOT SACHSE, PRESIDENT OF THE JERRABOMBERRA RESIDENTS' ASSOCIATION: Thank you. When Kristy was first elected in 2020, the Jerrabomberra Residents Association said the number one issue that we would like Kristy to resolve was our NBN issue. It came about when the contracts were signed for Fibre to the Premise, and we had a a change in government, and the option that half of Jerrabomberra was not part of that initial fibre contract, and so we had a pocket of 1,500 houses that received Fibre to the Node.

 

The issue was that everyone around us, including the greenfield sites, all had Fibre to the Premise, but there was a group of us that had Fibre to the Node.

 

What happened was that it was an inferior service. If you're like us, we're as far away from the particular node that you could get, and so that if everyone jumps on, our speeds declined. Then if it rained, and we've all had lots of rain of late, then that even declined even further. Then, you know, you've got teenagers in the house, they require more bandwidth, so does streaming services on top of it, it makes it really, really difficult.

 

And so that's why it was such an important thing for our community that we had the ability to get Fibre to the Premise, and so happy today that I can say that I have Fibre to the Premise, I get 100 Mbps and I just am so thankful that we've been able, or Kristy and her team and NBN have been able to make this happen.

 

It's so difficult when we're trying to run a small business from home, you know, to have these challenges when you know that you can look over the Edward Land Parkway and other residents in your suburb have got that Fibre to the Premise, but we're still on this antiquated technology. So, today's a really special day, and I'd like to say thank you so much.

 

DION LJUBANOVIC, NBN CO: Thank you, Margot. Great to see the smiles on getting connected. It's great to have been able to get you connected. So many homes and businesses across Australia can now order a full fibre service, and this is great news. For customers, it means they'll be able to access NBN's highest‑speed tiers and get the most reliable and secure Internet connection into their home.

 

On average the Australian household now has 21 connected devices. We've seen over the past previous times since COVID that data used inside the home has increased by 20 per cent. So, whether you're using your connection for streaming 4K content, using multiple devices in multiple homes, using the latest in Telehealth or education services, or looking to future-proof your home, NBN full fibre high-speed connection is what you need, and it's easy to connect. All you have to do is go on to the NBN website, nbn.com.au, check your address, and if eligible purchase a high-speed plan, and RSP, your Retail Service Provider, and NBN will do the rest.

 

JOURNALIST: How important is this roll‑out for local businesses?

 

ROWLAND: Well, this is absolutely essential, and we know that businesses, especially in regional Australia, rely on connectivity in order to service the needs of their customers. There would not be, I think, a small business in Eden Monaro, Minister McBain, who would say that this is not absolutely essential for their needs today. And I think this reflects the Albanese Government's understanding of the needs of regional Australia with some 660,000 premises who will be eligible for these upgrades under our election commitment. That's really important that we have those small businesses having the same level of connectivity and service as their metropolitan cousins.

 

JOURNALIST: And you've already touched on it a little bit, but how will the upgrades help local businesses?

 

ROWLAND: Local businesses that order an upgrade will have this fibre connection and enjoy the benefits of a faster‑speed tier plan. They'll be able to have more reliability, they'll be able to ensure that they meet the needs of their customers, and that's what small business is about. Customers expect that their needs will be met in a fast manner and to do that you need fast internet.

 

JOURNALIST: And how far off are we rolling out NBN to all regional areas?

 

ROWLAND: Well, we are rolling out this Fibre Connect program right across Australia. We have invested $2.4 billion for an additional 1.5 million premises across Australia, 660,000 of those in the regions. So that is progressively being rolled out. As has been explained, customers will be able to access this for free, as long as they order a higher‑speed tier plan, but that work is being done by NBN Co and progressively rolled out right around Australia.

 

JOURNALIST: Can I just ask a couple of questions of Margot?

 

SACHSE: Sure.

 

JOURNALIST: So how will the upgrade help your business?

 

SACHSE: We are able to do backups back to our home here in Jerrabomberra where our premise is in Fyshwick in the ACT, and with all small businesses, the door to the shop may close at 5 pm, but business goes on, day, late into the evening and early in the morning. And what that allows us to do is to move our data and manage our data without having to, you know, to do it ourselves, without having to, you know, spend money with other people to do it.

So, it gives us that flexibility to do that, and plus, that means that we can also get up ‑ like we start work at 5 o'clock in the morning before the kids get up, and it allows us to know that we can all work, you know, seamlessly at that hour of the morning and then again in the evening as well. So, it gives us that flexibility that you need, because small business really doesn't stop when the doors of the shop close.

 

JOURNALIST: And how bad was the internet affecting your business before the change?

 

SACHSE: We've just come out of a very rainy season, and, you know, it was frustrating, you know, very stressful at times when you just don't know if the internet will work. The whole neighbourhood might be streaming, and we're trying to work, and we're at the end of the line. And that was the main driver, is that it's okay if you were near the node, because the pipe shrunk as you got towards the end. So, and then you add water, and it slows down even more. And so, at times my husband got in the car and drove into the office because it was just unworkable to work from home.

 

JOURNALIST: And just one question I had, how long have you guys been in business for?

 

SACHSE: Oh, forever. Since 2000 and ‑ I think Army Centenary is 2001.  I don't know exactly. It just seems forever!