Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you very much, Senator Brandis. There is considerable concern around the inaccuracy of the stated water savings. The Victorian government is looking at saving around 225 gigalitres a year. A concern certainly raised during the committee by some was that the very premise that those savings are based on is incorrect. Yet we have seen no independent audit, nothing whatsoever, to give any certainty or any kind of comfort to those members of the Senate committee that were very concerned about this particular issue. Indeed, one of the recommendations that we have made in the minority report is to ensure that there is an independent audit of those savings. It is absolutely vital that this take place. Minister Garrett should come out tomorrow and say he recognises that there is a requirement to have an audit of this process and that the audit should be done—we believe by CSIRO—immediately.

This is far too important an issue to simply allow the Victorian government to make claims about the process that are unsubstantiated. It is not only the people in the Murray-Darling Basin but also people right across this nation who deserve a response to this, because there is no doubt that water is going to be—and is right now—one of the biggest issues for this country. It would simply be sensible for, as I said, the minister to come out and say he has absolutely no problem at all with requiring an independent audit immediately.

If he does not do that, what should we assume? If the minister is not prepared to say, ‘Yes, I absolutely require an independent audit,’—and it is our understanding that it actually is a requirement under the EPBC Act—then what is he trying to hide? If the minister does not say that there should be an independent audit immediately, we can only assume that there is something that he is trying to hide. So we need to have absolute clarity on this. We need to make sure that those uncertainties are looked into to. It is far too important an issue for this audit not to take place. Simply taking that water out of the basin is completely wrong.

It was very pleasing to see that all of those senators—the Liberals, the Nationals, the Greens and the Independent senators—were able to reach an agreement quite easily that the minority report would stand in all of our names. We had a very clear view of what was appropriate and what should be taking place. I recommend the report to the Senate. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.