Government would stop buying more Murray-Darling water
The Murray-Darling Basin is the land around the Murray and Darling rivers. The federal, or national, government buys water rights from farmers there. A water right is a lasting share of river water. Senator Matthew Canavan has a plan for a new law, called a bill. It would stop new deals that add to the total water the government owns there. Buying water for First Nations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) people would carry on.
Official name: Water Amendment (Ending Further Murray-Darling Basin Water Buybacks) Bill 2026
- The government owns some of the river water in the Murray-Darling Basin. This bill would stop it signing new deals that make that total bigger.
- It could still sell some of its water and buy the same amount somewhere else.
- Deals already signed are left alone. The ban also does not cover buying water for just one season, or water from under the ground.
- A program that buys water for First Nations communities could carry on.
- Each year, Parliament would get a list of every deal the government signed to buy river water.
Who it affects
- Farmers in the Murray-Darling Basin who own river water: The government could not buy their water if the deal adds to its total. It is up to the government to check that, not the farmer. Farmers could still sell to other buyers in the water market.
- Towns and businesses that rely on farm water: The senator says fewer government buys would leave more water for farming and local jobs.
- First Nations communities in the Basin: First Nations means Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The program that buys water for them is left out of the ban, so it can keep buying.
- Members of Parliament: They would get a yearly list of every deal the government signs to buy river water in the Basin.
Why it exists
The Murray-Darling Basin is a huge area of land. Rain that falls there runs into the Murray and Darling rivers, or into rivers that flow into them.
Farmers there can own water rights. A water right is a lasting share of the water in a river. The owner can use that water, for example to grow crops, or sell the right to someone else.
The national government buys some of these water rights from farmers. This is called a buyback. The water then stays in the rivers for the environment, meaning the rivers and the plants and animals in them. Buybacks are one way the government meets the goals of the Basin Plan. That is the plan for how the Basin's water is shared.
Senator Matthew Canavan brought in this bill. A senator is a member of the Senate, one of the two parts of Parliament. This is a private bill, which means it comes from one senator, not from the government. He wrote notes on the bill to explain it. His notes say the government is again leaning on buybacks to get water back into the rivers under the plan.
He says each buyback leaves less water for farming. He says that can make people less sure they will have the water they need. He names farmers, food factories and country businesses.
Ban on new water buys
The bill adds a new part to the Water Act 2007, the main law on the Basin's water.
Right now the government owns water rights to some of the river water in the Basin. Add them all up and you get its total share. The bill says the government must not sign a new deal to buy a water right if that would make its total share bigger.
The ban only covers water in rivers, lakes and dams. It does not cover water pumped up from under the ground.
It only covers lasting water rights. It does not cover deals where someone buys the use of some water for just one season.
It only covers deals signed after the bill becomes law. Deals signed before then still go ahead.
What counts is the total. The government could still buy and sell to move its water around, as long as its total does not grow. Say it sells water rights on one river and buys the same amount of water on another. That would still be allowed.
Water for First Nations
One kind of buy is left out of the ban. A government program buys water rights for First Nations communities in the Basin. Its full name is the Murray-Darling Basin Aboriginal Water Entitlements Program. An entitlement is another word for a water right.
That program could keep buying water. The senator's notes say this supports the right of First Nations people to take part in their own culture.
Deals and farmers' rights
Say the government breaks the ban and signs a deal anyway. The deal would still count. The farmer who sold the water would keep the money and would not lose out. This is so a farmer is not punished for the government's mistake.
The bill does not stop farmers selling water rights to anyone else.
Sometimes something the government does takes away a person's water right, or makes it smaller. When that happens, the person should be paid fairly. The bill does not change any right to be paid. That is a separate matter. The ban is only about the government choosing to buy water.
The bill does not create any new crimes or fines for farmers, for people who buy and sell water rights, or for anyone else. The ban only applies to the government.
Yearly report and other changes
The head of the government's water department would have to write a report each year. It would cover the year from 1 July to 30 June. The report must list every deal the government signed to buy lasting river water rights in the Basin.
It must list every such deal, even ones that did not make the government's total bigger. That way Parliament can check the ban is being kept.
The report must go by 30 September to the minister in charge of water. That is the member of the government who runs this area. The minister must then give it to both parts of Parliament, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Parliament does not meet every day. Each part must get the report within its next 15 meeting days.
The first report would cover the year that started on 1 July 2026. The bill was brought in later, in October 2026. So the first report could list deals signed before the ban. Those deals would only be listed. The ban would not apply to them.
The government has a pot of money called the Water for the Environment Special Account. The law lets this money be used to buy water rights, to reach a goal of 450 gigalitres. A gigalitre is a billion litres. The bill says buys with this money must follow the new ban too. It does not change anything else this money can be spent on.
The minister could also write short-term rules to sort out small problems as the change starts. These rules could not change the ban itself. They could not be made more than 12 months after the bill starts.
Waiting in the Senate
Parliament has two parts, called houses. They are the Senate and the House of Representatives. A bill must pass both to become law. Then the Governor-General, the King's representative, signs it.
Senator Canavan brought the bill into the Senate on 15 October 2026. The Senate has not voted on it yet.
To become law, it would need to pass the Senate and then the House of Representatives. If it does, the whole bill would start the day after it is signed into law.
Its journey through Parliament
| 15 Oct 2026 | Senate: Introduced and read a first time |
| 15 Oct 2026 | Senate: Second reading moved |