Roger Cook, Rita Saffioti deliver budget that aims to insulate WA economy from global shocks
For everything governments say about their priorities, budget papers reveal where their real intentions lie.
WA Premier Roger Cook's first budget since being elected in his own right has a clear theme, and for the first time in a few years, it's not cost-of-living relief.
Those immediate pressures, at least according to the budget papers, are largely in the rear-view mirror.
Don't worry, the state's coffers are still overflowing with iron ore royalties, which have remained higher than expected, and huge GST payments from the Commonwealth.
Cook and Treasurer Rita Saffioti's first post-election budget pays for the basics, then looks to use the rest to start re-shaping the state's economy.
If it goes to plan, that will mean being less reliant on importing many products by manufacturing more locally, and diversifying what the state exports to the world.
"If we don't explore these opportunities to value-add, to have more local manufacturing, then we will be filled with a lot of regret in 10 years' time," Saffioti told reporters yesterday.
As you'd expect, industry is already singing the government's praises.
"Just like Taylor Swift, the government's entered a new era," Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief economist Aaron Morey said.
"It's moving from the roads era to the industrial era [with] significant funding in ports, water, energy — so critical to the future of the WA economy."
It's a bold ambition, and one many have spent years calling for.
It's also well-timed, according to the government, to see the state through the global shocks ahead.
But, like everything in life, it comes at a cost.
To be clear, the cost isn't as great as it might have been in other places, thanks to two of the WA budget's familiar friends: GST payments and iron ore royalties.
Royalties have benefited from an iron ore price that has remained higher for longer than expected, although it is expected to fall over the years ahead.
That would probably still leave the books in decent shape, but luckily for Saffioti, WA's GST take will also be rising.
Together, those sources will continue to account for about a third of the state's revenue.
Other states are continuing to battle deficits, and no doubt another year of seeing WA's surpluses towering over them from across the Nullarbor will be met with the usual complaints.
But given Western Australia again rewarded Anthony Albanese for his deference to the state, it's unlikely he will be racing to change those arrangements, despite the significant cost to the Commonwealth budget.
It gives the government financial power that many others could only dream of.
That power is nothing new, of course, and especially since COVID has been focused on two areas: immediate cost-of-living relief and building the Metronet projects that helped Labor get elected in the first place.
This budget effectively places both in the past.
Only a portion of Metronet projects remain unfinished, and the government's headline cost-of-living measure — hundreds of dollars off households' electricity bills — has been scrapped.
Instead, the bulk of the government's infrastructure spending — some 40 per cent, or $15.1 billion over the next four years — is being put towards power and water infrastructure and ports.
Saffioti told parliament that infrastructure would enable private sector investment, which would help build a "fortress" around the state's economy, like the state did during the pandemic.
"While not a worldwide pandemic, the global instability and volatility we now face means we must once again stand together to repel any economic threat," she said.
But some West Australians will be left wondering if such a heavy focus on the future is slightly premature.
The government argues economic pressures have eased, which is true, looking at key indicators.
Inflation has cooled, and there are signs the rental market is stabilising, even if prices remain higher than many can afford.
Saffioti said that meant the risk of global turmoil had overtaken the cost of living as the most pressing issue for the government.
"We don't want WA to be collateral damage in global economic chaos," she told the ABC.
But people are still doing it tough, with ShelterWA still reporting "overwhelming" demand for housing support services.
"The question really has to be asked: where is the cost-of-living pressure relief, [with] the cost of water up, the cost of electricity up, the cost of emergency services levy up?" Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas said yesterday.
The government's solutions are targeted, which helps with not fuelling inflation again, but means some miss out.
The $337 million on offer for residential battery rebates and no-interest loans is great for those who own a home, and works into plans to develop a local battery manufacturing industry, but does nothing for renters or people without solar panels.
Another round of the up-to-$250 student assistance payment would be welcome relief for families, but it means nothing for anyone without school-aged children.
And capping public transport fares at one zone will save $196, but it isn't much good for people not near public transport, or who need to drive for their work.
The bigger, structural relief the government is promising will take some time to come.
More housing will be years away, given the long game of catch-up the construction sector is playing after a post-COVID population surge.
Secure skilled local jobs will also take time to materialise as the government's money to grow local industries filters through boardrooms and into construction and jobs.
And pressures on the health system look set to continue, with those on the front line having little hope that promised changes will make that big a difference.
It won't be easy, even with time and money. Successive governments have tried to break WA's boom-and-bust cycle without any luck.
And that global uncertainty Saffioti wants to protect the state against could arrive faster than her fortress.
Luckily for the government, the next time voters will have a chance to pass judgement on their plans is in four years.
By then, they should have a sense of whether that fortress has been built or crumbled under the weight of reality.
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