Adam Bandt (Melbourne, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Agriculture. Given Chinese government owned company Shenhua's Watermark coalmine is about to be developed in the heart of the Liverpool Plains, what have you, as Minister for Agriculture, and your government done to protect the Liverpool Plains from mining and what will you do to stop this mine going ahead and irreversibly damaging some of the best agricultural land in Australia? Doesn’t massive coalmining in the heart of some of the most fertile farmland in the country demonstrate the failure of the National Party to stand up for farmers against the mining industry?

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What have you ever done for farmers? You're a disgrace.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The parliamentary secretary will desist. The Minister for Agriculture has the call.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question.

Mr Champion interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Wakefield is pushing his luck.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Might I remind the House—to get the chronology of this right—that the exploration rights for that mine were granted by the Labor Party for $300 million, by a minister who has been called to be corrupt by ICAC—former Minister Macdonald. You would remember him, wouldn't you—one of yours? So what we on this side were handed are the actions of a corrupt minister, and we are trying—

Opposition members interjecting—

It looks like some people on that side might know him better than others. So I am happy that you asked me a question about the actions of a corrupt Labor Party minister and what they have done and how we are trying to deal with this issue. I acknowledge that the only area we now have to deal with it is under the water trigger, but we can only deal with it in a specific area. We are looking at this. We are doing our very best in the very limited area we have, because of state legislation and because a corrupt Labor Party minister set this up.

Honourable members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There will be silence on both sides of the House!