Prime Minister Kevin Rudd started his day campaigning on the merits of the National Broadband Network (NBN) but ended up back in Canberra because of dark events a world away.
After an event in Sydney, Mr Rudd called a temporary halt to the campaign to jet back for intelligence briefings on the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime, which killed a large number of civilians.
Horrific images of dead men, women and children have galvanised the world, with Australia having a direct interest through its seat on the United Nations security council.
Mr Rudd said he wasn't about to make any rash judgments on what should be done and the next practical step was formal national security briefings to himself and other relevant ministers.
Briefings have also been offered to Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.
"Calm sober response means taking the information available at hand first, analysing precisely and carefully what has happened here, and then carefully considering appropriate responses," he said.
Before he left, Mr Rudd toured the National Broadband Network training and discovery centre in the electorate of North Sydney held by shadow treasurer Joe Hockey.
He marvelled at some of the new NBN applications, including technology allowing a GP to monitor the health of an elderly patient at home and a device to conduct remote dental examinations.
Accompanied by parliamentary secretary for broadband Ed Husic, Mr Rudd released a new report which he said demonstrated how the NBN would underpin economic growth and jobs for the future.
"This is a liberating technology," he told reporters.
The single greatest driver of productivity for business in general for the decade ahead would come from the NBN in ways not imagined yet, he said.
"If you don't have the information super highway coming into your business in the future, you are going at a disadvantage."
Mr Rudd said the election was a choice between Labor's investment in the future and the coalition's determination to rely on the communications technology of the past.
He said if the government was returned at the election, it would create a $10 million NBN innovation fund, offering grants to developers of applications to improve small business competitiveness.
"The NBN is an economic game changer," he said.
Mr Husic said businesses moving into the digital space were twice as likely to hire new employees and lift their revenue.
"We have got to be ready. We have got a big challenge ahead of us. Worldwide, data is expected to grow between 2009 and 2020 by 4300 per cent. So we need a good network in place," he said.
