2018-02-15
The Australian Greens are calling for an independent audit of the Murray Darling Basin Plan, including where taxpayers’ money has been spent and how much water has actually been returned to the river, following the Senate last night agreeing to the Greens’ move to block handing over more water to big corporate irrigators.
“We’ve stared down the bullies and stopped the Federal Government caving to New South Wales and the big corporate irrigators, but now we must take immediate action on a way through the quagmire that the Murray Darling Basin Plan has become,” Greens Murray Darling Basin spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.
“Until we have a full, independent audit, until we have transparency on where billions of dollars of taxpayers’ money has gone, the millions of people who rely on the Murray Darling Basin cannot be assured that the Plan is delivering what it was supposed to; securing stronger environmental flows to ensure the river would survive, and be able to sustain Basin communities.
“The Murray Darling Basin Plan needs to be fixed, not changed to suit the interests of greedy corporate irrigators at the expense of struggling river communities and the environment.”
Media Release Water and Murray Darling Basin