Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I don't agree with the term 'water stolen', but I did acknowledge in my first answer that, indeed, the northern basin is often disconnected from the southern basin in times of low inflows into that system. Of course, it is correct that, of the 70-gigalitre adjustment proposed to the northern basin, on average a very small proportion of that—only a few gigalitres—would, in fact, ever make it to the southern basin and potentially through to the Lower Lakes. That is, indeed, one of the reasons why many of the claims that have been made by the Greens in particular and some of those opposite are claims that are misplaced, are claims that misinterpret the science and are claims that ignore the reality that the northern basin—