Russell Broadbent (McMillan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak about the issue of water. It should be on everybody’s lips today because the issue of water has crashed into the area of Gippsland. I have here a copy of a letter to the editor from John McCarthy of Pearce in the ACT, in which he refers to Malcolm Turnbull, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, tip-toeing around the states, trying not to offend state ministerial water wallahs such as John Thwaites in Victoria. He writes:

If anything, federal water czar Malcolm Turnbull has been way too soft when dealing with the states and territories on their failure to provide water security to our major cities.

Instead of criticising Mr Turnbull’s personality (“Turnbull puts ego ahead of results”, 11/9) Victorian Water Minister John Thwaites would be better occupied in detailing for Victorians just how much of the $1.6 billion in water revenues raised since 1999 has been spent on drought-proofing Melbourne, Bendigo and Ballarat.

And since Mr Thwaites now has his hand out for more federal water funding, many of the rest of us would also like to know how much of that $1.6 billion went into Victorian consolidated revenue rather than critically needed water infrastructure.

I agree with Mr McCarthy. He goes on:

So Mr Turnbull is absolutely right when he says that during the current drought state and territory governments have continued pulling big dividends from their water monopolies while, at the same time, using restrictions to reduce demand rather than invest in new water supply infrastructure. To add insult to injury—

writes Mr McCarthy, and I thank him for this letter—

some governments, such as the ACT’s, and water suppliers in south-east Queensland have had gall to use the reduced demand to justify increasing water rates to offset the reduced revenues—and compliant price regulators have acquiesced in this.

Mr Turnbull needs to keep the pressure on people such as John Thwaites, Steve Bracks and Morris Iemma to protect our cities from water shortages and to ensure that the monopoly water revenues are spent on ensuring that outcome.

Our state candidate for Narracan, Gary Blackwood, has called it correctly today when he says in a statement that we need to see a feasibility study conducted to analyse the cost benefits of a proposal that will see fresh water replaced with recycled water for use by large industries in Gippsland. It is not that we are opposed to reused water being used in power stations. We support that principle. But what is the state government on about? They have got the Thomson dam. They have already got the water from the Tarrago Reservoir. Now what have they announced? Secretly, they now want the water from Blue Rock Dam as well. This is a totally inappropriate response to the drought we are facing. Blue Rock water is Gippsland water. Tarrago and Thomson have already been allocated to the city. Mr Blackwood says:

I think people in Narracan have every right to be nervous about the Bracks Government’s appalling record on water infrastructure.

He has got it right too, just as John McCarthy from Pearce, ACT, has got it right. The poor infrastructure and bursting water pipes across Melbourne show that they have not spent the money. They are wasting water; it is going down the stormwater drains.

John Thwaites has sat on his hands for seven years regarding water—

says Mr Blackwood—

and now Victorians are paying for this lack of forward planning.

This feasibility study is important. The program to bring recycled water into Gippsland, which the federal government will play a part in, is important. But can I say that Mr McCarthy and Mr Blackwood are spot-on here: they have condemned John Thwaites for his inaction for seven years.