At the Drought Summit the Prime Minister made an announcement which included a $15.3 million mental health package, most money which could stay in the government’s pocket had government made good decisions in the first place. For irrigation community’s poor government policy is a major cause of mental health issues.

The lack of vision for long term water security shows that the government is totally out of touch with the needs of rural Australia. Currently the government is spending $13 billion to remove water from the very regions which were established to drought proof the country.

Now they are spending $5 billion to make rural communities and farmers more resilient. Right now the Murray Valley in NSW is in a manmade drought, with water in storages yet farmers on zero allocation - a major source of stress emotionally, financially and mentally.

The mental health issues of farmers across the southern basin would have been considerably improved if the government had announced they were spending some of the $5 billion on projects in South Australia to improve the management of the Coorong and Lower Lakes.

Returning the South East drains to the Coorong and installing Lock 0 could potentially free up thousands of gigalitres of water for rural communities. Instead of watching the Murray River run a banker at many places, the Murray farmers could be producing food for the rest of the country, rather than stuck on zero percent and becoming part of the problem.

Unfortunately, the Drought Summit has missed a golden opportunity. Rural messages are not getting through to our politicians and it is time to get voices into Canberra who will represent the grass roots and will be listened to.

I decided it was time that I wrote our Prime Minister Scott Morrison to congratulate him, and inform him that there’s more than the Wentworth byelection.

Drought that is devastating to our farmers livestock and native animals that are dying of hunger, and the low allocation of water for irrigators who are unable to produce a corp, when one misses the time to plant it takes another 12 months to plant that crop, and we are a lucky country that politicians in the past built the dams for the communities to produce food.

Today’s politicians are all city university educated beautiful people who know nothing of life in the country, what are they doing is pleasing the city people, on account the more people that vote in the city than country people.

I was horrified to read in The Area News the miserable condition of women in Nepal, (Helping heal, October 29, 2018). Even the small girls are not safe there I appreciate Sandra Holden – Lake Wyangan tail-blazer, for helping these women of Nepal. She is doing her true Christian duty towards these aggrieved women. The people of Nepal (Gurkhas) are known for their bravery and loyalty. Buckingham Palace in London, residence of Queen Elizabeth of Britain is guarded by the Gurkhas. I have seen this with my own eyes when I went to the UK. Most of the people of Nepal are either Hindus or Buddhists. For the Hindus every woman is an image mother goddess, similar is the case with the Buddhists. The condition of women in Nepal is shameful for both the Hindus and Buddhists of Nepal.