Matthew Canavan (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia) Share this | Hansard source

Through you, Mr President, I can inform Senator Hanson-Young that at no point did the government offer funding to an Indigenous group to secure or obtain their support for Northern Basin Review amendments. The minister has made clear that the government was in negotiations with both Labor and members of the crossbench to gain support for the Murray-Darling Basin Plan. Those negotiations were not successful, as the Northern Basin Review amendments were disallowed by the Senate.

As I was mentioning earlier, it is a shame in my view that those Northern Basin Review amendments were not passed, because they were based on independent advice from the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, the organisation the former Labor government listened to when putting in the plan, and they also committed to conducting an independent northern basin review, whose recommendations they have now rejected. That has put at risk 200 jobs. According to the MDBA, 200 jobs are at risk, because the Labor Party politically joined with the Greens rather than listen to the independent advice of the experts in this area. (Time expired)