Call for royal commission

“Politics, and politicians, continue to destroy our waterways, our rural communities and our way of life.

“Politicians are causing this problem. Only an independent royal commission will fix it.

“And if any politician opposes a royal commission into water, voters need to know that politics is part of the problem and not part of the solution.”

Ms Dalton says what she describes as the “mismanagement of the Murray-Darling Basin”, and the ongoing decline of the Coorong, prove how badly water is treated in Australia.

“Imagine there are 1000 cars outside a petrol station, waiting to fill up, and the owner is standing there pouring all the petrol down the drain,” she said.

“That’s what state and federal governments are doing with our water.

“It’s absolute madness and it must stop immediately.

“Only an independent royal commission, that can force politicians to give evidence under oath, will be able to end this waste.”

Speak Up chair Shelley Scoullar said the group had long been in support of a royal commission into the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

“Some of our very first submissions into various inquiries included the need for a royal commission,” Mrs Scoullar said.

“For as long as I can remember, we have said that this is a political plan based on securing votes rather than good outcomes.

"Currently, the Murray-Darling Basin Plan is limited by unrealistic political goals.

“To allow the Basin Plan Review and Basin Plan 2.0 to have a real impact on helping shape good outcomes to manage our water resources for long-term water and food security, along with protecting our environmental assets, we need something to change.

“A royal commission may well be that pivot point that allows those necessary changes to occur.”

When asked by the Riv sister paper Pastoral Times if she supported Ms Dalton’s calls for a royal commission on water, Federal Member for Farrer Sussan Ley did not give a definitive answer.

But she did agree the approach to water policy needs to change.

“Farmers and regional communities throughout Farrer are hurting because the water system is clearly not working as it should,” Ms Ley said.

“There are clear and numerous examples of failure and non-compliance in the government's administration of the Murray-Darling Basin, and Labor’s reliance on rushed, over-priced buybacks has been a disaster.

“As the local member for Farrer my focus is on practical, immediate action to fix what’s broken by delivering a water system that is fair and actually supports both healthy rivers and productive agriculture.

“That means listening to farmers, prioritising real outcomes over ideological numbers, and not stripping water from communities without accountability or balance.”

Ms Dalton said while the royal commission on water would come at a cost, she said it would save Australians in the long run.

“Australian communities lose billions of dollars, every year, because our water is grossly mismanaged,” she said.

“An efficient, independent royal commission will stop this appalling waste, once and for all.

“I would encourage every voter in Australia to ask their politicians, ‘Do you support a royal commission into Australian water, or are you part of the problem?’”