The term is designed to get people to keep quiet because for whatever reason, pointing out problems is bad.

Just look at the hundreds of thousands of people in Australia who took to the streets to protest the federal government's inaction on climate recently.

But here's the thing, the concept is pretty common in politics.

Think of Howard's Battlers or the Scott Morrison's 'Quiet Australians' - they're terms used to signal the virtue of those people they believe are their true supporters.

This week the NSW Nationals 'right to farm' bill will go before a committee in the NSW Legislative Council but it's seriously undercooked.

That bill will include tougher penalties for trespassing - including jail time, creating penalties for releasing livestock or damaging farm property and provide legal protection for the 'right to farm'.

However, in the great panic of protesters jumping fences, it seems the Nationals have forgotten a few things.

Someone still has to catch and prosecute trespassers and that means more police officers are needed and realistically private property isn't under threat of being pulled out from under us.

If the NSW Nationals weren't so busy virtue signalling they might have time to consider some things they could do which are more worthwhile.

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Irrigators down on the Murray called for the release of conveyancing water to help what's left of their winter crops. More dams and a closer eye on the use of environmental watering are needed.

Of course, the Murray Darling Basin Plan isn't just a state issue so obviously there's going to be no quick fixes on water policy.

Perhaps the state government could consider its planning tools? Each year there's valuable farm land eaten up by residential development.

Instead of spreading new homes out from town centres, more could be done to encourage high density development.

It might actually have the benefit of keeping valuable farmland for farmers which we're going to need as the world's population continues to grow.

Having a 'right to farm' sounds lovely but it's got to be more than a warm fuzzy feeling in your stomach.