Greens wag Murray-Darling Basin school

The Greens couldn’t be bothered showing up to today’s Murray-Darling Basin senate estimates hearing, Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources David Littleproud said today.

 

Just over two weeks after sabotaging the Basin Plan and the Murray River with a disallowance motion, Senator Hanson-Young and the Greens were a no-show at an important hearing into the Basin.

 

“The Greens’ disallowance will probably cost South Australia 1000 gigalitres – the equivalent of two Sydney harbours. Having vandalised the Murray Darling Basin, the Greens can’t even be bothered showing up to important hearings which might educate them on what they’ve done,” Minister Littleproud said.

 

“The Plan is a balanced approach to water reform but the Greens have always wanted to tear it down for their political reasons. Perhaps they were scared of learning about the consequences of their actions.

 

“The Greens have always wanted to wreck the Plan like angry, naïve teenagers and punish river communities that have defied drought and floods for more than a century.

 

“This childish vandalism was enabled by SA Best, the Australian Conservatives and Labor when they disallowed the Northern Basin Review for the sake of cheap points during the SA election.

 

“That disallowance could well cost 180 jobs in the northern basin, as the review states.

 

“The Greens had their chance to learn today by putting questions about the Basin Plan to the government, the relevant Department, or to Murray Darling Basin Authority officials.

 

“The Greens could have asked about water savings, buybacks, the benefits of investing in new water infrastructure and environmental improvements, but chose to wag school instead.

 

“Perhaps the Greens didn’t attend because the experts would have criticised their policy of wrecking the Plan.

 

“The Coalition is committed to delivering the Basin Plan and protecting the jobs in Basin communities.”