He is calling on the Federal Government to speed up processing times and be courteous enough to keep irrigators up to date.

“I have heard from constituents within my electorate who have been waiting for over 3 months to even find out if their submission has been accepted,” Mr Secker said.

“These irrigators have agreed to surrender their water as a requirement of the grant but they have been left in limbo by an incredibly slack Labor Government.”

Registrations of interest for the grant closed June 30, with one of the requirements of the grant that the applicant must tender their water for sale to the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder, and that the applicants must clear their properties of trees/vines etc and irrigation infrastructure.

“It does not make sense for irrigators to clear blocks until they have been notified and signed a contract for the water sale but the delay by the Government will equate to a mad rush to clear blocks before the end date of March 2010," Mr Secker said.

“Many irrigators will also need the financial support from the grant to get their blocks cleared as the grant for clearing does not get paid without conditions such as producing receipts of clearing.

“It is time the Government offered some no nonsense support to irrigators who have been hit hard by the drought and have had to make hard decisions.”

Mr Secker said the delay has had "enormous financial and emotional impacts on irrigators with many expressing the desire to be able to move on with their lives”.

“I am calling on Mr Rudd to speed up the process and give irrigators what they were promised," he said.