Switkowski appointed new NBN boss

ZIGGY Switkowski has been appointed executive chairman of the new NBN Co board, Communications Minister Malcolm Turbull announced today.

FORMER Telstra boss Ziggy Switkowski has been appointed executive chairman of the new NBN Co board, Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull says.

"The project needs new leadership," Mr Turnbull told reporters in Canberra on Thursday.

Dr Switkowski replaces outgoing chairwoman Siobhan McKenna and will be joined by current NBN Co board members Kerry Schott and Alison Lansley.

Ms Schott and Ms Lansley are the only survivors of the former NBN Co board, all of which tendered their resignations after the coalition won the election.

Dr Switkowski was one of the most experienced telecom executives in Australia, Mr Turnbull said.

"Dr Switkowski is an outstanding Australian business leader," he said.

He will be executive chairman until a chief executive officer is appointed.

Mr Turnbull said a strategic review was under way to see exactly what was happening with the NBN project.

"In a nutshell ... what the status of the project is at the moment; how much it is going to cost; and how long it will take to complete it on the current plan or the Labor government's plan of a 93 per cent fibre to the premise model," he said.

It will also look at what savings can be made in cost and time, including if there is an increased use of fibre to the node.

Mr Turnbull said it was important to have a clear and accurate assessment as to where the company was at the moment.

"We don't have a blank sheet of paper," he said.

"Labor has made shocking mistakes. There are billions of dollars that Labor has wasted that we will never be able to recover. This has been a shockingly misconceived, wasteful exercise in public policy."

Mr Turnbull said it was important NBN Co "owned" the project. "In the past this project has been riddled with politics," he said.

"What I've said to the company is I just want the plain, unvarnished facts. We do not want spin or for the company to tell us what they think what we might like to hear."

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