Mr Coulton said the region stretching from Coonamble to the Queensland border and across to Weilmoringle and Enngonia had been dry for up to four years.

"It's a desperate situation for the people involved," he said.

"There has been some relief with rain in some areas but the falls have been very patchy because of the nature of the weather in the last three of four years.

"Some people have been fortunate enough to be under storms while others have missed out.

"At Coonamble, for example, the town received 70mm in late December but people living 6km away got nothing.

"The official rainfall figure recorded at the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) weather station in Coonamble slewed the data for the district.

"This sort of thing is happening all over rural Australia and that is why the federal government is putting money into the BOM to provide more accurate weather recording."

Mr Coulton said he understood the frustrations of farmers and small business operators in drought-affected areas.

He said some people wanted cash assistance not long-term, low interest concessional loans.

There had also been calls for a return to the old Exceptional Circumstances system that provided drought assistance based on lines drawn on maps.

Mr Coulton said the government realised improvements were needed to better gauge the impact of drought.

"That's why we decided to work with rainfall information from the BOM," he said.

"We accept that technical information from weather stations may not provide an accurate picture of what is happening in a particular area.

"That is why the system provides opportunities for farmers to build a case detailing their individual situation.

"I would advise farmers to make sure they make use of the services provided by rural financial counsellors rather than relying on possibly inaccurate information provided by a neighbour or friend.

"An extra financial counsellor has been allocated to Walgett because the government appreciates the problems the north-west is facing."

Mr Coulton said he accepted there were sometimes problems with BOM long-range forecasting.

"In my own situation we had 200mm at Warialda when there were predictions of a shockingly dry summer," he said.

"The thing is, farmers can't blame politicians for the weather. We are doing our best in a difficult situation.

"Drought funding from the federal government is now up over $600 million and more than 2000 farmers across Australia are receiving household support.

"Money has gone into water upgrades and grants for low-interest loans. We have also provided $3 million to the NSW government to tackle wild dogs, feral animals and pest weeds in drought effected parts of the state."

Mr Coulton said he had visited farmers in the north-west where conditions were "soul destroying".

"One bloke at Lightning Ridge told me he is back to where he was 17 years ago," Mr Coulton said.

"Things are very tough and the ultimate solution is rain.

"I am willing to fight for any workable drought assistance scheme. In the meantime I am working with what the government can provide.

"No one is blaming farmers for being poor managers and no one I know thinks that farmers should be able to prepare and have reserves for four years of drought.

"The government has acknowledged the problem of drought and is offering assistance to help people get going again when it rains.

"That is why we have allocated $1.5 million to a community grant scheme for Brewarrina, Walgett and Coonamble.

"People who have been laid off because of drought will be employed on projects that source materials for local businesses and put cash back into communities.

"The low interest loans offered to farmers over 10 years are a good deal and worth more money than the drought assistance interest rate subsidies of years gone by."