Murray-Darling Basin Plan

S.E. ANDREWS (Gibson) (14:48): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier outline to the house how this government is supporting actions to deliver 450 gigalitres of environmental flows?

Mr Whetstone interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Chaffey is warned for a final time.

Ms Stinson interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Badcoe, order!

Mr Brown interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Florey is on a final warning, as well as the member for Chaffey.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (14:49): I thank the member for Gibson for her question. The member for Gibson is a passionate and enthusiastic supporter of our state's environment in a range of areas in her local community but also more broadly because the member for Gibson understands that water is very much the lifeblood of our environment, particularly in a harsh climate like we have here in South Australia.

As far as the delivery of water is concerned, that is something that those on this side of the house haven't just stated as an aspiration or a theoretical goal but something that we are committed to delivering—actually delivering. I am so grateful, indeed I am very proud of the fact, that the Deputy Premier of South Australia has taken her commitment to the environment and translated it to an outcome that is set to deliver real water—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —real water for the River Murray in a way—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Hammond!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —that hasn't occurred over the life of the former government. Prior to 2018, there was a strength in this parliament of bipartisanship towards state-based advocacy for environmental water flows for the River Murray. We worked together, those on the Labor side of the house and the conservative side of the house working together to stand and confront those in the Eastern States, particularly Victorians, who would seek to deprive us of the water we know that the Murray so desperately needs.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: That bipartisanship was torn up—torn up—by the minister responsible for water in 2018 when that minister decided to capitulate—

Mr Odenwalder interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Elizabeth!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —to the interests of the Eastern States.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Chaffey!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: It was a scandal—a scandal unlike any other we have really seen in recent political memory in South Australia. I might take the opportunity to remind the house of what page 414 from none other than a royal commission report had to say at the time. It said that the South Australian government's agreement to changes to the socio-economic criteria for efficiency measures should not merely be described as ill-advised. It is nothing short of a capitulation—capitulation to the interests of the current commonwealth government—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Chaffey, order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —and those of Victoria and New South Wales. It is so contrary—

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for West Torrens!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —to the interests of South Australians that the decision by the minister responsible is almost certainly a breach of at least 2.5 of the South Australian Ministerial Code of Conduct. These words—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: No minister, acting reasonably, could consider these changes to the criteria to be anything but totally antipathetic to the interests of South Australia and the South Australian environment. He goes on, 'South Australia's agreement to these changes should be immediately reversed.' Well, this minister's done it—this minister's done it. Not only reversed those changes—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —now has agreement to deliver more water.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Chaffey, you are on a final warning.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: But we know that this battle is still only just beginning because it requires legislation to pass the federal parliament. Now there is an opportunity for those opposite to cleanse themselves of this history. There is an opportunity for them to come to the table—

Mr Brown interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Florey!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —re-establish bipartisanship in this state chamber and advocate to the federal parliament collectively that we need the law to change so that voluntary water buybacks can now become lawful and we see water returned to the system. This is going to be a battle.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: We know there are still forces within the federal parliament that are opposed to voluntary water buybacks. We know there are ill-advised forces in the parliament that will seek to oppose this effort. So we call on those opposite: join us in this fight, re-establish bipartisanship and ensure that this water minister gets the water that we had been promised all those years ago.

The SPEAKER: Premier, your time has expired. Before I call the member for Hartley, I observe that the member for Chaffey and the member for Florey are on final warnings.