Interesting developments down under
No the new special edition DVD included ‘Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport’ book that my mother ordered from Amazon last week still hasn’t arrived … this is far more exciting - and topical with the debate that is ongoing around the Digital Britain Intrim Report published earlier in the year by Lord Carter.
Australia - a country the same as the USA (minus Alaska and Hawaii) with a population of 20 million people, is planning the building of a Aus$43 billion ’superfast’ broadband network. There were already plans - advanced plans - for the private sector to build a A$10bn national broadband network … these have today been replaced with a government-led initiative to build high-speed network described as the country’s most ambitious infrastructure project.
The broadband network, (a fibre-to-the-home project) will take eight years to build, and importantly during this time of economic downturn it plans to support 25,000 jobs a year during the initial construction phase, and 37,000 during the peak build period. The new broadband network plans to provide Australian homes and businesses with download speeds up to 100 times faster than what is currently on offer.
The announcement is being ‘cautiously welcomed’ by the public and private sector in the region, though is being treated with some scepticism by the opposition party (I do love the Aussie bluntness of this phrase from the leader of the opposition who described the Australian Prime Minister as not having “a head for figures, he’s got a head for headlines and that’s all.”)
According to FT.com Asia Pacific, The announcment said that a new company, majority owned by the government, will invest up to A$43bn. The government will use A$4.7bn already set aside under its Building Australia fund for the project and will raise additional finance by selling “Aussie Infrastructure Bonds” to retail and institutional investors.
Canberra said it would sell down its interest in the new company within five years after the network was built and operational, suggesting the government will be involved in the project well into the 2020s.
“We wish to do this in partnership with the private sector,” Mr Rudd (Australian PM) said. “The government proposes that it would … welcome private sector participation up to 49 per cent.”
Perhaps the idea of “UK infrastructure bonds” might catch on over here - I’m told that one of the DC10plus network partners has been exploring the idea with a number of Local Authorities over here for more local delivery … so the job of today is to see what more can be found on this.
Maybe a study tour to Australia …
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