THE boss of a future Murray-Darling Basin compliance agency plans to establish five regional “field offices” across the basin, but is still awaiting legislation to create the organisation.
Former NSW National Party leader Troy Grant, who was hand-picked to lead the yet-to-be-established agency, started in his new role in December 2020, but four months into his new role, legislation to create the organisation has not yet been passed.
Mr Grant, whose title is interim inspector-general of water compliance, told senate estimates he plans to allocate a total of 25 to 30 staff to the five offices once the agency is established.
The Murray-Darling Basin Plan is fast approaching its 2024 deadline to complete what are called supply and constraint projects, aimed at recovering water for the river system. The yet-to-be-established compliance agency is key to meeting this target.
Under questioning from Labor senator Deborah O’Neill, Mr Grant revealed he is paid about $200,000 a year for a three-day-a-week contract – plus expenses. He said he was “performing far in excess of those three days”.
Mr Grant, who has been paid about $50,000 to date in the interim role, rejected Ms O’Neill’s suggestion it was “frustrating” he was not yet able to do his job.
“I’m very confident that, when the legislation is passed, because of all the work we’ve been doing in the last 16 weeks through the machinery of government arrangements, it will have us ready and firing on day one to our full capacity,” he said.
“The sooner the legislation is enacted in the parliament, the quicker we can start doing more than we are currently able to do.”
The draft legislation will give the compliance agency the powers to “compel information and to conduct inquiries, and provides us with staff to make sure that standards are achieved, assurances are garnered and audits conducted, that things like floodplain harvesting are properly examined, and information from departments and the authority can be validated,” Mr Grant said.
