Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

Given that the opposition in government set up an independent expert panel, which I think was a very good move—and I note that people now on the government side such as Senator Heffernan had a very important role in that—can the opposition indicate why it would not support this amendment, because I think the principles are effectively the same. Hydraulic fracking can have an impact on the water table and can have an impact on prime agricultural land. My supplementary question is whether the opposition would at least be inclined to support an inquiry into hydraulic fracking so that the concerns of the Limestone Coast Protection Alliance in South Australia and of many other communities around the country can be heeded.