Abbott Government has terminated the National Broadband Network’s fibre rollout in Kingston, Woodridge, Logan Central, Calamvale and Algester, leaving local residents and businesses having to rely on last century’s copper for their broadband, the Federal Member for Rankin, Jim Chalmers, said today.

Dr Chalmers said Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull are denying hundreds of thousands of Australians access to the boundless educational, health, lifestyle and commercial opportunities that fibre to the home delivers.

“Overnight Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull have pulled the plug on over 13,000 premises in Rankin receiving fibre-to-the-home broadband services,” Dr Chalmers said.

“This is despite the fact that under Labor, five more suburbs in Rankin were scheduled to receive fibre connections in the coming months.”

Dr Chalmers said these residents will be left with second-rate technology as a result.

“Residents and businesses in Rankin will be left with one of two choices: battle on using outdated copper, or fork out up to $5,000 to have fibre connected to their home or business.”

“Our community was looking forward to the benefits and opportunities that affordable, high-speed fibre broadband would bring to the area, but the Abbott Government has taken this away.”

“They are now the first victims of the Liberal cuts to the National Broadband Network.”

“The Government should be ramping up the rollout of the NBN, not slowing it down indefinitely.”