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Legislative Assembly
 
Murray-Darling Basin

17 October 2017
Questions without notice and ministers statements
SUZANNA SHEED  (IND)

 


Ms SHEED (Shepparton) (12:38:38) — My question is for the Minister for Water. Minister, will you commit to ensuring a full judicial inquiry is launched into the many issues now at large following the recent ABC Four Corners report regarding water theft in the northern Murray-Darling Basin so as to restore the much-needed faith in the system for basin communities?

There are now five inquiries, reviews, audits and evaluations underway into allegations of water theft, compliance issues and a range of other issues which raise questions about the integrity of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) and its role in implementing, monitoring and ensuring compliance with the plan. None of these investigations will provide a comprehensive assessment of the myriad allegations and overall operational health of the system. There are too many questions being asked about the amount of water in the system, the negative socio-economic impacts, the neutrality test and the technical foundations behind the 605 gigalitres of environmental offset projects to warrant anything less than a full judicial inquiry.