Our tax dollars "hard at work". What a joke. This government is absolutely addicted to wasting our money. From the Daily Telegraph...

A PUBLICITY stunt to announce the first seven customers to sign up for a free trial of the NBN in NSW cost the federal government $140,000, it has been revealed.

The launch in independent MP Tony Windsor's northern NSW seat in May was attended by Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, as well as NBN Co boss Mike Quigley.

The government has now admitted that the cost of the event, which the Opposition has labelled as a "giant publicity stunt", was $138,474.05.

It was organised to show the PM "switching on" the first mainland NBN connection in Armidale.

It was later revealed that only seven retail customers in Armidale had actually signed up for the free trail prior to the launch - despite 3000 homes in the area being NBN ready.

At the time, Ms Gillard described the NBN as "the greatest infrastructure project in this nation's history".

Answers provided by NBN Co to a parliamentary inquiry into the broadband rollout have also revealed that the government-funded monopoly has leased top-of-the-market premium office space in Melbourne and Sydney in which to base it operations.

Documents show office space has been leased in North Sydney at a cost of $3.1 million a year - or $512 per square metre. This would put the office in the highest quality space, regarded as A grade or Premium real estate.

In Melbourne, its office rental costs $535 per square metre at a cost of $2.46m a year.

Liberal Senator Simon Birmingham, who put the questions to the company during a Senate inquiry, said the cost of the launch was unacceptable and with four similar events subsequently held in other states, the total cost of publicity could already be close to $700,000.

"Such is Labor's propensity for wasteful spending that even the flicking of a switch comes with a whopping great price tag," Mr Birmingham said. "These launches have been little more than giant publicity stunts for the Prime Minister and other Labor ministers.

"If Labor had any regard for taxpayers money it would refund the cost of these blatantly political media opportunities. By throwing taxpayers money around like confetti NBN Co is living up to all the fears many had about Labor's new $50 billion monopoly company. With expenses like these it is little wonder NBN Co has sought approval for price rises 5 per cent above the inflation rate."

The documents also reveal that by December 31, it is estimated that 1427 staff will be employed at an average yearly wage of $145,000 per employee.

The government was forced to defend its decision to select Armidale and denied it was because it was in Mr Windsor's seat.

A spokesman for Mr Conroy said: "The government expects that NBN Co will make reasonable and responsible spending decisions."

So what? They just gave themselves a massive pay rise. They'd spend $140,000 on a long lunch. Actually, I'm shocked it was so little., they might be cutting back.

Ex Dame Pansi wrote on Oct 3^rd, 2011 at 7:10am:

So what? They just gave themselves a massive pay rise. They'd spend $140,000 on a long lunch. Actually, I'm shocked it was so little., they might be cutting back.

makes you lauigh when they have to have a LEVY to rebuild Qld doesnt it????....

hows all the rebuilding going anyway pansi... is everytone in their brand new homes yet.???....if some are still living in tents or caravans.. then that makes this type of squandering even bloody worse..

down here in your friendly capital.. we dont hear a word about Qld anymore..... oh something about bananas being back on the trees..

yeah right..get our priorities right.. >:(

THE Opposition claims to have found a $4.l billion spending black hole in the Gillard government's finances in its first full year of government, with billions of dollars wasted on bungled policies or cost blowouts.
The Coalition's committee for the scrutiny of government report claims to have found that contrary to its promise to rein in expenditure, the government had gone on an unprecedented spending spree over the past year.

The waste report includes things as trivial as tens of thousands of dollars spent possum proofing the Prime Minister's Sydney residence Kirribilli House, to $20 million in handouts to unions and a $1.75 billion blowout in the cost of dealing with asylum seekers.

Scrutiny of government committee chair Jamie Briggs will today release the waste report card for 2011.

It claims to have found $4.1 billion in "new waste" since the election - spending deemed questionable or unnecessary, blowouts in existing programs and the cost of fixing bungled programs.

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"Twelve months on and the debt continues to pile up," Mr Briggs said.




its not the only blow out....in yesterday news the pink batt fiasco is till blowing out..the cost of undoing what they did is on going and needing more funding..

its like shovelling money into a furness..must be!