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Thursday, 9 February 2012
Page: 571

Murray-Darling Basin

Senator HANSON-YOUNG (South Australia) (14:23): My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Popula­tion and Communities, Senator Conroy. Since the Murray-Darling Basin draft plan was released in November, has the government obtained any legal advice as to whether this draft plan complies with the requirements of the Water Act?

Senator CONROY (Victoria—Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Digital Productivity) (14:24): I am happy to seek some further information on that to give you a specific answer to that specific question.

Senator HANSON-YOUNG (South Australia) (14:24): Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. I am somewhat perplexed that on such a major issue which is meant to be on this government's reform agenda for 2012 you cannot give a straight yes or no as to whether legal advice has been obtained. Minister, given that you will be taking this question on notice, I ask you to look at whether legal advice has or has not been obtained, given the decreased amount of water that this draft plan requires to be returned to the river.

Senator CONROY (Victoria—Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Digital Productivity) (14:25): This is a draft Basin Plan. It was released, as you know, on 28 November 2011 by the Chair of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, the Hon. Craig Knowles. The authority is now undertaking public consultation on the draft Basin Plan over a 20-week period. The authority has been holding both public and targeted meetings with stakeholders in numerous towns and cities across the basin following the release of the draft plan.

The government's position has always been that the Basin Plan should have a sound scientific foundation and that economic and social considerations should also be taken into account. Late last year the authority released a review undertaken by the CSIRO of the science underpinning the draft Basin Plan. The authority also released a further report, Socioeconomic analysis and the draft Basin Plan, which brings together the socioeconomic work considered by the authority to date. (Time expired)

Senator HANSON-YOUNG (South Australia) (14:26): Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. This is in relation to the Labor Premier in South Australia, who has flagged legal proceed­ings—a challenge in the High Court. Have this Labor federal government considered legal advice in relation to their Labor colleague's comments?

Senator CONROY (Victoria—Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Digital Productivity) (14:26): I will seek further information on that matter for you and next week in Senate estimates hopefully I will see you there and we will be able to share that information.