The Murray–Darling Basin Ministerial Council

The Murray–Darling Basin Ministerial Council is established by the Murray–Darling Basin Agreement, Schedule 1 to the Water Act 2007 (Cwlth), as amended.

Membership of the Ministerial Council comprises the Commonwealth Water Minister, who also chairs the council, and one minister from each of the Basin states and the ACT. Current members are: Chair, Senator the Hon Penny Wong (Commonwealth); the Hon Phillip Costa (New South Wales); the Hon Tim Holding (Victoria); the Hon Karlene Maywald (South Australia); the Hon Stephen Robertson (Queensland); Mr Simon Corbell (ACT).

The Ministerial Council has an advisory role in the preparation of the Basin Plan by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority. The authority will provide the proposed Basin Plan to the Ministerial Council and council may refer the proposed plan back for reappraisal if it disagrees about certain matters. The Ministerial Council will then provide its views on the proposed Basin Plan to the Commonwealth minister.

When the Basin Plan is first made, the authority must advise the council on the socioeconomic implications of any reductions in the sustainable diversion limits in the Basin Plan. The authority is also required to provide advice to the Ministerial Council on the impacts of the Basin Plan five years after it first takes effect.

The Ministerial Council has policy and decision-making roles for matters such as state water shares, and the funding and delivery of natural resource management programs, as set out in the Murray–Darling Basin Agreement. The authority is required to prepare an annual corporate plan for approval by the Ministerial Council in relation to these matters.

The council also has a policy and decision-making role in regard to issues relating to critical human needs as provided for in the Act, which also provides for a complementary role for the Basin Plan in this regard.

The council may give directions to the Basin Officials Committee concerning its functions and powers under the Murray–Darling Basin Agreement, and can also seek the advice of the Basin Community Committee on these functions.