South Australian Centre Alliance Federal Government senator Rex Patrick unveiled a policy to ban cotton exports by 2022 in response to the controversial SA Royal Commission into the Murray Darling Basin.

Senator Patrick said the growing of irrigated cotton was not a good use of Australia’s scant water resources.

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“We live on the driest inhabited continent on the planet yet are using our precious national water resources to produce a water intensive crop which we then export overseas so that foreign entities can profit making textiles and clothing,” he said.

The bill has been introduced in parliament by the Member for Mayo and fellow Centre Alliance Party member Rebekha Sharkie. 

Cotton Australia CEO Adam Kay, said this was not only an attack on the cotton industry, but a reckless attack on rural communities and hardworking Australian farmers.

“We thoroughly condemn this move and call on the Federal Government and Labor to stand up for our farmers and denounce this outrageous assault on our industry,” Mr Kay said.

“Let’s call this announcement for what it is: a dangerous political stunt.

“Once again we are seeing some politicians, mainly those from South Australia where no cotton is grown, kick our hardworking growers in an attempt to score easy political points. These farmers are enduring one of the toughest droughts in our nation’s history and do not deserve to be targeted so unfairly. It must stop,” he said.

The federal member for Parkes Mark Coulton said the Bill is an  “Ill-conceived” attack on important farming industry and the communities whose economies rely on cotton production. 

“This is the most ridiculous, ill-informed, ill-considered piece of legislation that I’ve ever seen in my decade in parliament," he said.

"It would destroy the Murray Darling Basin, it would destroy an industry that’s worth billions of dollars to Australia every year and we need to stop this nonsense now.

“Are we going to ban the export of wine, are we going to ban the export of oranges, almonds, all those things that use water under an allocation that has been devised for quite some time.