Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Water shortage, to these young children, is a major problem of concern. They are incredibly distressed. At every class and every forum I visit, I tell them not to be distressed, as we have one of the largest dams in Australia just one hour away, and it is full of water.

The students, like me, are perplexed about why we are not doing more to harness off the Burdekin Falls Dam—and herein lies the question about what the government is doing about providing water security for Townsville. Besides absolutely nothing, the Deputy Prime Minister is actively excluding Townsville from accessing government funds and resources. The tragedy is that Townsville, as a city, is excluded from accessing the Turnbull government's National Water Infrastructure Development Fund because it is for agriculture and irrigation only.

The Deputy Prime Minister needs to cut the red tape and allow for a portion of the funds to include Townsville, especially if Townsville is to be a pivotal trade supply hub. The Deputy Prime Minister created this fund, and he can change it. I demand that he does. Any inaction will foreshadow a loss of investment in the regions and a loss of jobs. Townsville is not going to give up our fight for water security just because it may rain because we know that this drought will happen again. I will not give up my fight for Townsville. I will keep rising, and I will keep demanding in this place for the Turnbull government to take immediate action on addressing water security issues for the north.

See this speech in context