Nats deputy defends dearth of river funds

Nationals deputy leader Bridget McKenzie has defended the federal budget containing no new money for the Murray-Darling, saying rain was more important.

Senator McKenzie said Commonwealth cash was not the answer to the drought-stricken river system.

"You know what's going to help the Murray-Darling Basin system? It's farmers, it's people and the environment," she told ABC Radio National on Thursday.

"It'll be rain. It'll be more water into the system."

Senator McKenzie said some regional communities had been in drought for seven years.

"The only thing that's going to fix that is more water through the system," she said.