Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese said the federal Labor Party would not play politics with regional and rural people and would support any cash drought funding the government put forward.
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Speaking at the 2019 Bush Summit, Mr Albanese said people were tired of conflict in politics and he aimed to be the Labor leader and "not the opposition leader."
"Any level of cash the government believes should be injected into regional and rural communities we will support," he said.
"Our concern with the legislation that was introduced last time was that it took money from the Building Australia Fund.
"Drought funding has merit in and of itself, and we do not understand why the Building Australia Fund, which is there to fund any infrastructure project, including in rural and regional Australia, was used for drought funding. So my message to the government is simple; don't play politics with this, it is too important, just stop it, provide funding as you should, and we will back it, at any level you want, done."
Coonamble farmer David Taylor echoed Mr Albanese's thoughts and said his speech was "genuine."
"I think Anthony Albanese made a genuine promise during his speech and what he brings to politics is a real effort to try and make it bipartisan," he said.
"I think he has a genuine concern about the issues facing rural NSW, which is why we are all at the summit today.
"As Leader of the Opposition, it is encouraging to hear him say he would not stand in the way of good policy.
"Scott Morrison mentioned many of the policies the government has on the table at the moment, some of them were a little bit confusing, and some of them don't seem to reach rural NSW.
"As a farmer, I sometimes feel discontented, and Mr Albanese's speech was excellent because it issued a statement not only to those present at the conference today but also to all people affected by the drought, whether that be on farms or in the towns."
Mr Taylor said due to the drought, small communities are suffering from a lack of economic growth.
"Albo's promise to stay bipartisan on this and to take the politics out of it can only be beneficial to everyone concerned," he said.
"He is right, to make a difference, it's all about infrastructure."
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Craig Thomson
I am a media and communications professional with experience across print, digital, social and radio broadcasts. I am currently the Editor of Australian Community Media's Launceston Examiner.
I am a media and communications professional with experience across print, digital, social and radio broadcasts. I am currently the Editor of Australian Community Media's Launceston Examiner.
