MP Justine Elliot announced yesterday that planning had started for the National Broadband Network (NBN) rollout in the Tweed.

Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Stephen Conroy, joined Mrs Elliot for the announcement, which will improve internet speeds for most Tweed residents.

The national rollout for the NBN is expected to be completed by 2015, and the Labor Government has said it will deliver download speeds of up to 25Mb per second and upload speeds of 5Mb per second.

Mrs Elliot said the NBN would be a great boost to the Tweed region.

"This is fantastic news for the people living in these communities," Ms Elliot said.

"The NBN will change the way we live and work here and I am very excited by the progress we'll see on the ground in the next 12 months."

Mrs Elliot said it was important Australians who were not living in major cities received the same fast broadband access as their city dwelling counterparts.

"The Gillard Government is prioritising regional and rural Australia for the rollout of the NBN," she said.

"The majority of NBN construction has taken place in regional and rural Australia, while NBN Co has brought forward the introduction of wireless and satellite services so that people in the bush can get access to better broadband as soon as possible,"

But the Coalition has said that if it wins the next federal election it will be scrapping the NBN and will reappropriate the funds to tackle traffic issues by building more roads and highways.

The NBN will be an expensive infrastructure project if all goes to plan, with costs expected to be over $30 billion.

For more information about the NBN rollout in New South Wales visit www.nbnco.com.au/rollout.