INDEPENDENT MPs, including Member for Indi, Dr Helen Haines, have shown their support for the Albanese Government’s extensive water buyback initiative. Federal member for Nicholls, Sam Birrell MP, expressed his concern, stating, “The passage of this legislation through the House of Representatives is a sad day for people across the Murray-Darling Basin who face the economic and social destruction of their communities.”
Birrell, who voted against the Water Amendment (Restoring Our Rivers) Bill 2023, argued that this approach sacrifices productive agriculture, jobs, and regional communities for environmental outcomes. He further criticised the idea of insulating the Goulburn-Murray irrigation district from buybacks, calling it “ill conceived.”
While the bill still needs to navigate the Senate, Birrell remains committed to a “sensible outcome,” including a socio-economic test that prevents buybacks unless they have a neutral or positive impact on Basin communities. He concluded, “We can’t afford Labor’s water plan and the fight isn’t over.”
