10 March 2015 Shadow Minister for Communications Jason Clare will tonight join Member for Newcastle Sharon Claydon at a public meeting in Thornton to discuss the concerns residents have about being left with a second rate version of the National Broadband Network.Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott are creating a digital divide across Newcastle. There are 2,800 homes and businesses in a select area of Mayfield that are lucky enough to be getting the super-fast NBN that uses fibre-optic cable whereas the rest of Newcastle will have to put up with a second rate version that relies on the old copper network. Newcastle is a growing city with a lot of innovative people. Super-fast internet is essential if these entrepreneurs and creative thinkers are going to reach their potential. Yet Malcolm Turnbull is giving them last centurys technology instead of the infrastructure of the future. To make matters worse, Malcolm Turnbull promised that areas with the poorest service like Thornton would be the first to get the NBN: Suburbs, regions, towns and business districts with the poorest services and greatest need for upgrades will receive first priority. Coalition plan for a better NBN, 25th July 2013. He has broken that promise. The people of Thornton still dont know when the NBN is coming to town and they are paying the price for the Governments lies. More than 70 residents are expected to turn out this evening to tell Malcolm Turnbull that the way he is treating Novocastrians is just not good enough.