Time for Abbott to stand up to Gillard's politically correct harassment

This big is beautiful project, which aims to make Australia a showcase for technological advancement by rolling high speed fibre optic cable into homes and business across the country, is so full of holes that its chances of flying are minimal to say the least.

But to raise doubts about the financial viability of this scheme, which is designed to replace one privately owned telco ( Telstra) with a government owned one ( NBN Co) is tantamount to heresy and displays abysmal lack of technological knowhow.

Conroy has dismissed out of hand a report by the highly regarded Economist Economic Intelligence Unit which found that the Government was spending more than any other country to connect households to the fibre cable and which questioned the Government's slant to public investment over private investment in the scheme.

He publicly rubished the report as right wing ideological dogma. Apparently the Government's policy that the NBN should be publicly funded for the foreseeable future cannot be branded socialist ideological dogma.

These are the sort of issues which present Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott, with the opportunity to demonstrate that he has what it takes to form a credible alternative Government on a platform which will put Australia on a sound footing to face the challenges of the future.

Labor's strategy is clearly designed to wedge Abbott. To put him on the defensive forcing him to try to justify why he is not supporting policies which are clearly in the national interest.

There is an opportunity here for Abbott to do some political wedging of his own. He must not be intimidated by suggestions that, in Government, he would destroy Australia's information superhighway on the contrary to make it more attainable for those who want access to it.

On the issue of the environment he should deliver a strong and convincing energy policy and in doing so get off the fence on the need for nuclear power as a clean resource to meet the generating needs of a rapidly growing Australia.

If Abbott can maintain discipline within his own ranks this strategy will put the policy ball squarely into the Government's court where there are clear divisions on the role that nuclear power should play in the energy debate.