SHOOTERS, Farmers and Fishers Party MP Helen Dalton has accused NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian of "trying to break people's spirits" with border clamps.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The member for Murray was speaking after writing to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and asking him to intervene to "reverse draconian NSW Government measures denying people medical treatment, employment, access to essential goods and services and compassionate family visits".
Ms Dalton co-signed the letter with Wangaratta's Victorian Upper House MP Tania Maxwell and Independent member for Mildura Ali Cupper.
RELATED COVERAGE
The trio stated hundreds of jobs had been lost through the enforcement of the blue zone and fruit growers were facing "annihilation" due to labour restrictions.
"A continuation of this restrictive regime would be the death knell for small towns who have already been devastated by drought and water management," they write.
Ms Dalton told The Border Mail the Premier and Health Minister Brad Hazzard failed to grasp the fallout from their decisions.
"If Gladys Berejikilian really wanted to get to the bottom of what is going on she would come to the border communities and drag Brad Hazzard too, because they clearly don't understand," Ms Dalton said.
"If she's trying to break people's spirits and ruin south-west NSW she's doing a bloody good job and if she's thinking about here next meal it's probably been produced around the seat of Murray."
Ms Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney on Monday that "we've tried to be as thoughtful as possible about those border communities" and tried to "capture all the categories of people that need to cross frequently".
In their letter the politicians tell Mr Morrison that while they "fully support sensible restrictions" the NSW government had created a border zone which was "very narrow and illogical".
They want a border band to cover Bendigo and Wagga.
Mr Morrison has received the letter and is attempting to address concerns but is unable to stop states shutting borders.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has expressed concern about farmers not able to work their properties either side of the Murray River and harvest labour hit because of isolation rules for those entering NSW from Victoria.
"We're working very hard to get as many of them across or any of them across to be able to pick that fruit because the one thing that we don't want to see is navels or mandarins or....whatever is coming into season at the moment being left to waste on the trees or indeed on the ground," he said.
