Their water buybacks and policy settings are ripping the guts out of regional processing.
I’ve been warning this government for years that their approach to water - buybacks, restricted allocations, sky-high water prices - wouldn’t stay confined to the farm gate.
Now it’s costing jobs in our mills and factories.
NSW Labor keeps talking about supporting the regions while their water policies do the opposite.
You can’t buy back the water that grows the rice and still expect the mills to keep running at full capacity.
This government needs to stop treating the Murray-Darling Basin Plan as untouchable and start listening to communities like Deniliquin and Leeton, who are paying the price for Sydney-made water decisions.
Enough with the reviews and the consultations - the Riverina needs the NSW Labor Government to actually change course on water buybacks before more jobs walk out the door.
Both the federal and state government should undertake an environmental water audit as their holdings exceed 4600 giglitres well beyond the 3200GL requirement.
We are paying the price for the governments lack of transparency and accountability and inept water management.
This isn’t just about the Riverina - it’s about food security for the whole country.
Every job lost and every acre taken out of rice production is Australia becoming more reliant on imports to feed itself.
NSW Labor’s water policies are undermining our food security, plain and simple.
• Helen Dalton is the Independent NSW Member for Murray.
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