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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 256 asked in the Legislative Council on 24 March 2022 by Hon Dr Steve Thomas

Parliament: 41 Session: 1

STATE ECONOMY

256. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the Treasurer:

I am sure that the Minister for Emergency Services will miss his Thursday!

I refer to the release of the Standard and Poor's update for the Western Australian economy released on 21 March 2022, and to the Treasurer's responding media release yesterday.

(1) Does the Treasurer agree with page 2 of the report that ''in fiscal 2021 (year ended June 30, 2021) royalty income surged by a remarkable 44% to $A12.2 billion''?

(2) Does the Treasurer agree with page 2 of the report that the fiscal economy ''since mid-2020 has propelled broad-based revenue growth, including in transfer duties and payroll taxes''?

(3) Does the Treasurer agree with page 2 of the report that the state ''is now benefiting from top-up GST grants worth an estimated $A3.7 billion over fiscal years 2021 and 2022''?

(4) Why does the Premier's Statement not acknowledge revenue growth at all but hides the truth of booming income, when the S&P report it is based on highlights it all the way through the report?

Hon SAMANTHA ROWE replied:

I thank the honourable member for some notice of the question and provide the following answer on behalf of the Minister for Emergency Services representing the Treasurer.

(1) Royalty income in 2020–21 was $12 181 million, as outlined on page 63 of the 2021–22 Government mid-year financial projections statement. The McGowan Labor government's efforts to keep the COVID-19 virus out of the state paid massive dividends for the state. If our state had had the very long lockdowns experienced in New South Wales and Victoria, we would not have been able to take advantage of the high iron ore price. Part of the reason for the high iron ore price was that our competitors, including Brazil, had significantly reduced shipments due to the impact of the pandemic.

(2) Western Australia's domestic economy has been the strongest in the country throughout the pandemic, growing by 7.2 per cent in annual average terms between 2019 and 2021. The strong economic activity has translated into significant growth in revenues for transfer duty—also supported by the McGowan Labor government's building bonus—payroll tax, vehicle licence and insurance duty.

(3) The McGowan Labor government's efforts to campaign constructively to the commonwealth won a fairer share of the GST for Western Australia, including calling for a review by the Productivity Commission. This is unlike the previous Liberal–National government that failed for years to achieve a better GST deal for Western Australia, but spent billions on the state's credit card as if a deal had been done.

(4) Iron ore prices are highly volatile. Given this inherent volatility, the McGowan Labor government's budgets are based on a prudent iron ore methodology. The McGowan Labor government's responsible management of the state finances has reversed the reckless economic management of the previous Liberal–National government.