Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the minister representing the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Senator Eric Abetz. Will the minister update the Senate on the current drought situation? How is the Howard government acting to alleviate the serious problems this drought is creating and is the minister aware of any alternative policies?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Nash, that very effective advocate for the rural communities of this country, for her question. Australia is facing extremely difficult times with the continuing drought. The drought is taking a huge toll on rural and regional Australia. If we do not get good rain soon, the winter crops are expected to fail. This will have a devastating effect on our primary producers. The coalition government has worked and continues to work with the Australian farming sector to get through these tough times. Since 2001, this government has committed over $2.4 billion to drought assistance. Today the Prime Minister announced an additional $430 million in new funding for drought affected farmers—an announcement I am sure Senator Nash is very pleased about. This includes extending exceptional circumstances funding until September next year for 38 drought declared areas in South Australia and setting aside extra money for parts of Tasmania and Western Australia. All this is only possible because of the strong economic management of this government. If we had not brought the budget into balance, if we had not paid off Labor’s $96 billion in debt, freeing up billions of dollars which were previously being used just to cover the interest on Labor’s debt, how could we have afforded to support our farmers through these tough times? The answer is very simple: we could not have. This is the real human dividend of good economic management. As Labor’s record shows, and as those of the state Labor governments confirm, you simply cannot trust Labor with money.

On top of all that, Labor continues to play politics with our $10 billion plan to secure the future of the Murray-Darling River system and to secure the future of the farmers who rely on this river for their livelihood. The Howard government’s $10 billion National Plan for Water Security would put more water back into the system by piping and lining leaky irrigation channels. However, the Victorian state Labor government continues to play politics with this plan. While Premier Brumby and the Victorian state Labor government stand in the way of a workable solution for Australia’s water situation, Mr Rudd fully endorses this inaction. Mr Rudd pretends he is serious about addressing the looming crisis in the Murray. He pretends that he supports the National Plan for Water Security and he tells us that, if only a Labor PM were elected, relationships with the states would be just dandy. But what has he done to get the Victorian Labor Premier to sign onto the plan? Nothing, absolutely nothing. Indeed, the silence of those opposite confirms that. Mr Rudd is content to let Mr Brumby play politics with a plan rather than to act in the national interest. When it comes to Mr Rudd, what this demonstrates is this: look not at what Labor says but at what Labor does. Senator Nash, her constituents and other Australians can actually say that the Howard coalition government matches its words with actions in support of those in our rural communities who are doing it very tough because of the drought.