Terri Butler (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Environment and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister. I refer to the government's defunct National Water Infrastructure Loan Facility, which was announced 50 times. Can the Deputy Prime Minister confirm that in its last 15 months of operation $615,986 of taxpayers money was wasted on administering this scheme, which did not issue a single dollar in loans before it was shut down?

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

All I can confirm is that we're getting on board with building dams. I can confirm that $2 billion—$2,000 million—was part of the budget and is going to the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund to build dams. And I welcome states and territories of all political persuasions to get on board that journey with me to build on what we've already said we were going to do as far as Big Rocks—oh, here we go! They want to—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Prime Minister will resume his seat. The Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Arts) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, it's on direct relevance, Mr Speaker. The Deputy Prime Minister is talking about a different scheme to the one that's in the question. He's referring to dams that haven't been built during the time of this government and I'd ask that you would draw him back to the question.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tell him to—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for McEwen can leave under standing order 94(a).

The member for McEwen then left the chamber.

Opposition members interjecting —

Yes, well, he should have predicted it on the way up here! The Deputy Prime Minister has the call. The question was very specific; it asked him about a dollar figure. I won't go over the question again. He needs to confine himself to the question and be relevant to it or wind his answer up.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are moving from loans to grants. That's what the states and territories wanted; they wanted the money in grants, preferably, rather than loans, and that's what we're doing. And we're working with the New South Wales government, for Dungowan and Wyangala. Originally, we said we would do those two particular projects as a loans process. The New South Wales government wants it as grants and so we are going to build those dam infrastructure projects with New South Wales as grants. The difference that will make to inland New South Wales is the equivalent of 1.2 Sydney Harbours of inland water for flood mitigation, for water security for towns, for irrigation and to ensure that we can grow agriculture from a $61 billion enterprise to $100 billion—the goal for 2030.

That's what we're doing right through Queensland, whether it's at Emu Swamp Dam in the electorate of the member for Maranoa—and I know how hard Brent Finlay has worked to achieve the money that irrigators have put up for that particular project: $23.4 million of irrigators' own money. And we've put up $48 million, $6 million of which has been enabling roads. And I welcome being able to work with the new water minister in Queensland, given the fact that Anthony Lynham has retired. I look forward to working with the new minister to achieve that dream which has been on the books for way too long. We are building it, because it takes a Liberal-Nationals government to build water infrastructure, and that's what we're doing.