Barnaby Joyce says states should follow South Australia on coal seam gas

Deputy prime minister wants bans lifted on exploration and development, and royalties paid to landholders

The Nationals leader, Barnaby Joyce, has called for states to lift the bans on coal seam gas and has urged them to follow South Australia's plan to pay royalties as compensation to landholders.

The deputy prime minister, who is also the minister for agriculture, said lifting the gas bans should not occur on a carte blanche basis because of the need to protect prime agricultural land and productive aquifers. However, he did not say how prime agricultural land should be defined.