State economy—Jobs
44. Ms Ali Kent to the Premier:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's efforts to maximise Western Australian successes.
(1) Can the Premier outline to the house how this government's management of jobs and the economy is leading the nation?
(2) Can the Premier advise the house how this government's record compares with the record of the Liberals and Nationals?
Mr Roger Cook replied:
(1)–(2) As they say, winners are grinners, and Western Australia is certainly winning. For the third consecutive quarter, CommSec has named our economy the best in the nation. In fact, upon release of yesterday's State of the States report, CommSec said:
Western Australia has cemented its position as Australia’s top economic performer.
Like all good hat-tricks, this special achievement is replete with an impressive highlights reel, including retail spending being the best in the country and 11.5% better than the decade average; unemployment being the lowest of all states at just 3.5% in March; and WA being the nation's strongest home builder, with commencements growing to 10.4% above the 10-year average. It is important to know that apart from Western Australia and South Australia, every other state is building fewer homes than their 10-year average. Let me be clear on that: every state other than Western Australia and South Australia is building fewer homes than their 10-year average. Despite the difficulties associated with building and construction, we are steaming ahead.
Our economy and relative affordability have also propelled our population to be the fastest growing in the nation. Importantly, that has also sustained growth in business investment. WA is rising up the ladder. These positive economic indicators are what led CommSec to place our state first for economic momentum again and again and again—three times, Mr Speaker. This affirms that WA is on the right track. We remain the engine room of the nation’s economy despite the global headwinds. This is what you call resilience.
While this success is noted and celebrated, we recognise that WA is at the beginning of a much bigger journey. We recognise that the potential of our state is much more and we recognise that we can make many more things here. Western Australia is vital to the prosperity of the nation. To maintain that, we will continue to build a strong, diversified economy. We will continue building the homes and hospitals that we need to create the healthiest state in the nation. We will continue growing Western Australia into a renewable energy powerhouse, and we will continue to offer the best and most affordable training opportunities in the country.
The CommSec report is a vindication of this government's economic management. This stands in stark contrast to our friends in the Liberal and National Parties when they were last in government. They sent WA into recession. They took debt from $3.6 billion to $44 billion. There were 25,000 jobs lost in their last two years in government, and they had the highest unemployment rate in the country.
Not a single job was created in their second term. It is clear that if Western Australians want this state to continue to march forward, they can be confident that they have a government that is putting the policies in place and is backing investment, which is making sure we grow local jobs, and that we once again can be proud of the term "Made in WA".
