Political stoush erupts after alleged murder

Country Labor spokesman Steve Whan said he felt "a bit disgusted" by some of the comments made today about the death of Glen Turner, an Office of Environment and Heritage employee who was allegedly shot attempting to serve a notice for illegal clearing of native vegetation at a Croppa Creek property.

"In the short term, I think we should set aside debate (about the Native Vegetation Act)...and let this family grieve," Mr Whan said.

Mr Whan made his call in the light of comments from both sides of politics on Friday.

Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner and Coffs Harbour MP Andrew Fraser were both quoted talking about the Native Vegetation Act in the metropolitan media.

Mr Fraser was reported in the Daily Telegraph as saying the shooting was "a tragic event that I think has been brought about by bad legislation", while Mr Stoner said the land clearing laws "have been a sore point in farming communities since they were introduced by a Labor-Greens alliance in 2003."

While a spokesman for Mr Stoner later defended the comments as "contextual [and] made in response to media questions about the Native Vegetation Act...they were in no way an endorsement of the alleged criminal act," Labor's environment spokesman Luke Foley slammed them as an attempt to justify the alleged murder.

Mr Stoner responded by calling Mr Foley's claims "slanderous lies."

Greens Agriculture spokesman, Jeremy Buckingham, accused the National Party of stoking farmers' fears about Native Vegetation laws for political gain.

"Instead of inflaming the situation, the government should bring disparate groups together to de-escalate tensions, clarify the facts, and try to find common ground for reasonable reforms, Mr Buckingham said.

Mr Whan said everybody needed to calm down, regardless of how they felt about the land clearing laws.

The Nationals' Barwon MP Kevin Humphries also called for people to remember the Turner family at this time.

"This is a terrible tragedy and my thoughts are with the family and friends of everyone affected," he said.

"This is a devastating and traumatic time for many people.

"My only request is that any comment is extremely mindful of the privacy and dignity of the family, friends and colleagues directly affected by this incident."

Ian Turnbull, 79, was arrested and charged with murder on Wednesday, and is currently awaiting his next mention in Moree Local Court.