Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan was in Brisbane today to roll out the city’s first fibre optic cable.

But he faced a barrage of questions about the Government’s company and mining taxes.

Mikaela Aitken reports.

TRANSCRIPT

Mr Swan was bombarded with questions about the Federal Government’s tax reforms following shadow treasurer Joe Hockey’s criticism this morning of the mining tax.

Joe Hockey, Shadow Treasurer: “Even the most incompetent governments anywhere in the world would not introduce a tax that raises no money.”

Wayne Swan, Federal Treasurer: “For Mr Hockey to be critical in the way he was this morning when the Liberal Party is actually proposing to increase company taxes by over one per cent indicates that he’s completely lost the plot.”

The Treasurer was in Brisbane today to haul the city’s first National Broadband Network cable.

Construction work is now underway to deliver the network to more than six thousand properties in Aspley.

Federal Member for Petrie, Yvette D’Arth says the project will help turbo charge the city.

Yvette D’Arth, Federal Member for Petrie: “It’s not just about households and faster speeds for households. But it’s also about education and it’s also about health and businesses.”

The $37.4 billion network was originally ridiculed by the opposition.

But Shadow Minister for Communications and Broadband, Malcolm Turnbull says the Coalition won’t cancel it if they win the next election.

Whilst Brisbane will gain access to the NBN network from early next year, the nation wide roll out won’t be completed until 2021.

Mikaela Aitken, QUT News.