The Australian Ag Podcast: David Littleproud on water buybacks and the federal budget

The threat of water buybacks will threaten Murray Darling Basin communities, the Nationals leader says. Listen now.

The spectre of more water buybacks will “add fuel to the fire of emotions” raging in Murray Darling Basin communities, Nationals leader David Littleproud says.

The former water minister says any move to deliver the remainder of the Murray Darling Basin Plan by buying more water from irrigators instead of infrastructure works belies common sense.

“Why would we go and pump money and become the biggest buyer in a water market and start to push prices up artificially when we don’t need to,” Mr Littleproud told The Australian Ag Podcast today.

David Littleproud said it was pleasing to see funding retained for local roads. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

Basin communities were left on edge this week after the Federal Labor Government’s first budget revealed it had set aside an undisclosed sum for meeting commitments under the basin plan. Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek later confirmed this could include voluntary buybacks.

Mr Littleproud insisted the remainder of the plan’s baseline water recovery targets could be met through infrastructure works, rather than stripping water out of communities.

“I mean, Tanya Plibersek is in Sydney, I don’t think she has any real idea what this does to the regional communities is left behind,” he said.

The budget also showed the Government appears to be prepared to push back the plan’s June 2024 deadline, with funding already rolled over to 2025.

Mr Littleproud indicated the Nationals would be open to supporting an extension, providing the basin states were held to account.

In a wide-ranging interview with the Australian Ag Podcast, Mr Littleproud criticised the Government’s cuts to water infrastructure including axing the $5.3 billion Hell’s Gate Dam.

Despite calling Labor’s budget “the worst I’ve seen for regional and rural Australia in my lifetime”, Mr Littleproud said it was pleasing to see funding retained for local roads and the farm stewardship biodiversity program.

Continued funding for biosecurity was welcomed but there was still no long-term cost-recovery plan, he said.