NSW drought co-ordinator Jock Laurie stands down after less than a year
A new “office of drought response” has been created after the state government sacked the NSW drought co-ordinator and axed his position just over year after it was established.
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A new “office of drought response” has been created after the state government sacked the NSW drought co-ordinator and axed his position just over year after it was established.
A government spokesman said the new office would be drawn from current resources and would not cost anything.
Jock Laurie – appointed last year as the state’s drought co-ordinator – was also the Land and Water Commissioner, earning a package of about $276,000 for the roles.
The Daily Telegraph has been told Water Minister Melinda Pavey was instrumental in the decision to remove Mr Laurie as Land and Water Commissioner — the role in which he reports to her and was first appointed to in 2012.
It’s understood Ms Pavey’s office and other ministerial offices felt that Mr Laurie had limited dealings with them and they were not aware of the work he was doing.
There was also a sense that the work by the state’s Regional Town Water Supply Co-Ordinator James McTavish overlapped the role and Ms Pavey wanted the resources for Mr Laurie’s job moved to a team with more specialist skills as the drought intensified.
It’s understood the Premier’s office was unaware of the sacking.
A spokesman for Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the new office of drought response would “enable increased support for regional communities suffering during this prolonged drought”.
Ms Pavey and Mr Barilaro are both currently travelling overseas on work trips.
Mr Laurie was written to by senior bureaucrat Jim Betts last week and spoken to by the state’s water deputy secretary Jim Bentley about the decision.
Mr Laurie did not respond to The Daily Telegraph’s request for comment.
Former Water Minister Niall Blair described Mr Laurie as a “true friend of our farmers” when he was appointed drought co-ordinator last year.
One senior government source said Mr Laurie, a former National Farmers Federation president, was popular with farmers and in the regions.
Mr Barilaro issued a statement saying Mr Laurie’s contribution had been “outstanding” and he’d played an “important role in helping to lead the immediate response to the drought”.
