Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Hansard source

Sorry, New South Wales. Okay, now that we have got over that! There are a range of things that I am sure we could get lawyers to give their views on. If we had not gone down the path of getting agreement, cooperation and collaboration from the states, the prospect of actually implementing reform would become much more difficult. I for one do not believe that the best interests of any community in the basin are served by having a long constitutional validity argument. Their best interests are served by the government getting on with progressing this legislation, purchasing water, ensuring the independent authority can work on the Basin Plan, which includes the scientifically based cap, and investing to ensure that there are efficiencies.

From a South Australian perspective, there are a range of reforms in this bill that are beneficial, and which I am happy to take Senator Xenophon and other senators through, including conveyance water, which is one of the key issues for securing drinking water. This is a bill that will enable the government and communities to respond to the challenge of climate change. I commend the bill to the Senate.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Ordered that consideration of the message in Committee of the Whole be made an order of the day for a later hour.