A New South Wales minister has been forced to correct the parliamentary record on the number of prosecutions by WaterNSW for breaches of water laws, saying that his department had provided him with figures found “not to be accurate”. The figures were relied upon last year by the ombudsman to conclude, in an otherwise damning report, that enforcement of the water laws in NSW was improving. But as Blair had also relied on the same numbers for answers in parliament, he too needed to correct the record. “If parliament is to restore confidence in the administration of water in NSW, then there must be accurate information as a starting point,” he said. A spokesman for WaterNSW told the Guardian this week it was still investigating breaches of the NSW Water Management Act.

Source: The Guardian March 06, 2018 07:52 UTC