Claire Bickers: Why Barnaby’s water stunt will have ScoMo sweating
Just two days into his job, Barnaby Joyce has sparked off a new round of infighting within the Coalition. Claire Bickers explains why the SA fightback matters.
Opinion
Don't miss out on the headlines from Opinion. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Barnaby Joyce has been back for just two days and the National Party is trying to blow up the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
If this is a sign of the chaos to come, Scott Morrison has got a big problem on his hands.
South Australians won’t stand for any attempt to derail the Basin Plan – and particularly the 450 gigalitres which must be recovered for the health of the River Murray.
SA fought hard for that water to be included in the plan to help keep the Murray mouth open and reduce salt in the Coorong and Lower Lakes.
The Prime Minister can’t afford open warfare on this, not with a state and federal election coming up within the year.
Labor, the Greens, Centre Alliance and Rex Patrick will weaponise this issue at the election.
And while the Liberals haven’t lost the state’s most marginal seat of Boothby since 1943, a strong campaign on the River Murray could change that.
It’s unlikely Mr Morrison will strip the water portfolio from the Nationals, without causing more infighting.
But leaving the Nationals in charge of the river after this stunt is untenable.
Every decision they made would be scrutinised and open to attack, while sitting in a partyroom that has actively tried to scrap vital parts of a plan intended to protect such a significant natural resource.
The federal government’s commitment to actually deliver the plan “in full and on time” must be beyond reproach, now more than ever.
Only 2GL of the 450GL has been recovered so far and there are just three years left before the Basin Plan deadline.
Mr Morrison can’t afford to have too many weeks of infighting and instability like this with an election fast approaching ... or a Deputy Prime Minister so openly at odds with government policy.
It’s the river this time. What’s next?
Goers: Absurd logic in ‘stupid’ teen vote backlash
Many older people and politicians are too dumb to vote but we still let them, writes Peter Goers. Have your say.
Credlin: Productivity summit? It’s Albo’s tax-and-spend festival of waffle
We need to see the Albanese government’s so-called productivity summit for what it really is – Labor’s Tax and Spend summit – and drop the pretence, writes Peta Credlin.