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Good morning,

Yesterday I released the latest report on the Murray-Darling Basin and it revealed the parlous state of water in our food bowl.

We are dealing with a genuine crisis.

Irrigation allocations are still at either zero or extremely low levels, inflows into storages are at record lows and there is significantly less water stored today compared to the same time last year.

Horticultural and other water dependent industries are, needless to say, the hardest hit of all; and there is now, tragically, a high risk that permanent plantings could be lost.

The report recommends new measures to deal with the crisis, including the possibility of a reserve for critical needs.

This week I announced a further $430 million in drought aid for Australia's farmers on top of the $2.4 billion already provided by the Government.

My Government stands shoulder to shoulder with farmers and communities in rural and regional Australia. Our Budget is in a strong position and we will not let them down.

Listen to this Release (MP3 - 1.02Mb - 66secs)