IT is unfortunate an apparent attack of paranoia by some members of The Nationals has diverted attention away from the plight of Liverpool Plains landholders trying to protect their farms from the impact of mining.

Emails obtained by The Leader yesterday would seem to indicate senior Nationals were more concerned about not alienating pro-mining interests than in addressing the valid concerns of people you would think were a part of their core constituency.

In a remarkable email sent to Caroona Coal Action Group member, Fiona Simson, opposition spokesman for natural resources and Member for Myall Lakes, John Turner, appears to accuse the CCAG of leaking details to the media of a visit by The Nationals.

He also appears to accuse the group of staging a “political protest” and of trying to embroil The Nationals MPs in breaching an injunction against an earlier attempt to blockade access to Tim Duddy’s property.

These emails would appear to support subsequent claims by Mr Duddy he was accused by members of The Nationals delegation of colluding with The Greens to set up an “ambush”.

Mr Duddy, for the record, has vehemently denied those claims and is at a loss to understand where The Nationals are coming from on this issue.

The Nationals, as Mr Duddy rightly observes in today’s paper, have definitely made this all about them.

The real issue, and one which they appear to have overlooked, is the question of whether or not long wall mining can co-exist with the longstanding agricultural interests on the black soil plains.

Federal Nationals, unlike their State counterparts, appeared to have “got it” last year when the coalition government of which they were a part funded more than $6 million for a sophisticated study into the relative locations of coal seams and groundwater aquifers in the Caroona basin.

It is just unfortunate that having promised the money, the coalition did not follow through.

Those funds disappeared in the fallout from the 2007 election.