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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-11-27 Daily Xml
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MURRAY-DARLING BASIN

Mr WHETSTONE (Chaffey) (15:50): I would like to grieve on the Murray-Darling Basin, as I have many times in this place, on this rather historic day for the Murray-Darling Basin: reform in River Murray in South Australia has been achieved. For me and my constituents, and I think every South Australian, it is a day to remember for the Murray River in South Australia and the entire Murray-Darling Basin. We no longer have a guide to the draft of the basin plan and we no longer have the final draft of the basin plan. What we have today is a realisation of the Howard government's national water initiative. It is a 2,750 gigalitre plan for water to be put back into the river system and the environment for the health and sustainability of the river, and for me it is a great day.

In saying that, it is something which I have worked tirelessly and very hard on over the last 10 years. I have worked extremely hard with all levels of government, all facets of industry and communities to get an outcome. The plan was tabled in the parliament at 5pm last night, and it now has to sit there for 15 days so that it can achieve an outcome 'in law'; but there is still a lot of hard work to go. We still have to achieve about 1,200 gigalitres of water, and of that South Australia has to contribute around 83 gigalitres; so that is where the hard work really does start.

Where will that 83 gigalitres come from? I guess the question which really needs to be asked and which the Premier or the water minister should be answering is: when did they make that decision on the 83 gigalitres? I remember the Premier and the water minister coming up to my electorate in the Riverland. The Premier stated three facts: 4,000 gigalitres—no less; there will be no more water from the irrigators and their communities; and he will mount a High Court challenge. None of those three have come true and none of them are factually correct: we have not achieved 4,000 gigalitres; irrigators and their communities are still being asked for water; and he has now disbanded the High Court challenge. So where is that champion that he claims to be, the champion of the river? I think it is just political spin.

Again, we have to look at how we are going to achieve that amount of water. Putting politics to one side, the Water Industry Alliance is going to be critically important to the regional communities on the river, to my community (the electorate of Chaffey), for the 40 gigalitres that needs to be achieved, with a funding package of around $265 million. I think that is critically important and it is something that the Premier and the water minister have acknowledged as a vital part of water to be put back into the environment.

When are we going to achieve the other 40 or 45 gigalitres? I heard the water minister say, 'That's okay, we'll tip in 20 gigalitres.' Where are we going to find the other 20 or 25 gigalitres? 'Oh, we'll find that through works and measures.' Minister, where have you been when that funding has been on the table for the last three years? Where have you been putting those projects into place? Where have you been lobbying for those projects?

It has been political spin that we have had to put up with for three years. Today, enough was enough, with the Premier coming out and saying that the South Australian Liberal Party and the federal Liberal Party have been divided on this. We have never been more united on a plan that needed to be formed. Water minister, you will not find that we have not been united on this anywhere. It is political spin; it has been the highlight of your campaign.

Listening to the Premier close his motion today, he had that continual slight at the South Australia Liberal Party. His actions nearly stopped reform in this whole process—throwing rocks on the change room, throwing rocks upstream all the time. Not once did we see a reform package come out of the Labor government—not once.

An honourable member: What did you see?

Mr WHETSTONE: We saw a pipeline around Lake Albert. Why don't you fix the salinity issues in Lake Albert? Because you want to sell water out of that pipeline, that is why you are not fixing the salinity issues. It is an absolute commercial decision. It is a disgrace. Again why are we not—

The Hon. P. Caica interjecting:

Mr WHETSTONE: You're no champion, let me tell you. No solutions. The reason that you have got that money is you have sat by your federal Labor mates. Absolute disgrace.

Time expired.

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