Member for Stuart Dan van Holst Pellekaan will use the United Nation’s World Water Day to highlight the injustice of some South Australian households paying five times the going rate for water they can’t even drink.

In an address to Parliament today Mr van Holst Pellekaan will challenge the Weatherill Government to deliver drinkable water at a reasonable price to outback communities.

“It is outrageous that communities on the Barrier Highway are currently paying $13/kl for water that comes with a warning not to drink it,” said Dan van Holst Pellekaan.

“Drinkable water in Adelaide costs between $2.35 and $3.63 per kilolitre.

“SA Water is delivering third world standards for customers living in outback South Australia and it simply not acceptable.

“Access to drinkable water at a reasonable price is a basic human right and the Weatherill Government is in breach of this right.”

This year the United Nations theme is “Better Water, Better Jobs” and the head of UN Water Guy Ryder says on their website “water means work” and “all jobs depend upon water”.

“The United Nations theme strikes a chord for in South Australia as we struggle with the highest unemployment rate in the country and extremely high water prices,” said Mr van Holst Pellekaan.

“A constant refrain I hear from business is that the high price of water is a major part of the difficulty of doing business in South Australia.

“Whether it’s charging outrageous prices or refusing to accept responsibility for flooding people’s homes SA Water is not behaving in an appropriate manner.

“As a Government owned monopoly the responsibility for the behaviour of SA Water lies at the feet of the Weatherill Government.”