Federal Labor has been criticised by Victoria’s Labor government for its Murray-Darling Basin policy. 

Federal Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese and shadow minister for environment and water Terri Butler have put forth a five-point plan for the Murray-Darling Basin, in which it commits to “working with Basin governments and stakeholders to deliver on water commitments, including … 450GL of water for the environment”.

“We think that the best way to deliver that is for all the parties to work together with good will,” Ms Butler said. 

“We would prefer not to have to have any more interventionist means, but if we need to, that's something that will have to be considered.”

The current Murray-Darling Basin Plan requires all water savings, including an additional 450GL, to be delivered by 2024.

But there has been little movement on any of the projects designed to deliver the additional water.

Ms Butler says this is due to a “vacation of leadership” from the current federal government.

“[The federal government] has sent all the wrong signals to the Basin states in relation to delivering those projects, and we think it's important that the leadership vacuum be filled,” she said.

But Victorian Water Minister Lisa Neville has labelled the policy “disappointing”.

“We have agreed as a ministerial council on socio-economic criteria which is in the legislation, and framed out what that means,” Ms Neville told reporters.

“To change that would require the agreement of the whole Ministerial Council, and I am confident NSW and ourselves would not agree to any of those changes.”

Ms Butler said Labor would stick with the 2024 deadline, even if it means re-entering the market and buying water entitlements off farmers.

The Greens also say they will use buybacks to recover water in the Basin.

Other aspects of Labor’s Basin policies include measures to increase legal compliance with improved metering and monitoring of water takes across the Basin.

The party has also pledged to update the scientific knowledge of the Basin through $8.5 million funding boost for an upcoming review of the CSIRO Sustainable Yield study. It has promised a $3.5 million study of how climate change was impacting RAMSAR-listed wetlands in the Basin too.

Labor says it is committed to increasing both the ownership of water by First Nations people, and increasing their participation in decision-making.