CORONAVIRUS — STATE ECONOMIC RECOVERY PLAN
972. Ms J.M. FREEMAN to the Premier:
I refer to the McGowan Labor
government's effort in keeping WA safe and strong. Can the Premier
update the house on how this government's unprecedented $5.5 billion WA
recovery plan is supporting more local jobs and more local business and helping
to drive more economic activity across the state?
Mr M.
McGOWAN replied:
I thank the member for Mirrabooka
for the question. Obviously, our approach to deal with the situation has been very bold. It has been based on keeping the virus
out and WA has now gone eight months without a single community case,
unlike every other state in Australia. We wanted to keep our key industries
operating. I was insistent at the national cabinet level that our export industries
continue to operate in a COVID-safe way and that is why we got all the fly in,
fly out workers from the east to come here and live. Indeed, major industries
are now transferring their workforce from the
east or just employing locally, which is an enduring benefit for Western Australia
out of what has taken place. Within our hard borders, we lifted
restrictions far more quickly than any other state in Australia. Some states
are only today talking about going to the two-square-metre rule. We have been
there for probably six months. It is a strategy that has been vindicated by
every piece of economic data. We have shown that a strong health response
results in a good economic outcome. Indeed, we were the first state government
to release a recovery plan back in July. We did the policy work in the midst of
a pandemic and released a recovery plan back in mid-to-late July. That is what
this government did in the height of the pandemic. Western Australia is the
only state to not go into recession. The Western Australian economy is the only
state to record growth in annual average terms. The Western Australian economy
has grown by 4.9 per cent in the September quarter, and that is underpinned by
an 11.7 per cent increase in household spending, which is the strongest in
Australia and, I think, the strongest in the history of the state.
Mr D.A. Templeman
interjected.
The SPEAKER: Just because you
are Leader of the House does not mean you can talk all the time.
Mr M. McGOWAN: I must say
people say to me all the time that they cannot book a restaurant and they
cannot get somewhere to stay in regional WA. That is testament —
Ms L. Mettam interjected.
Mr M. McGOWAN: Is that a good
thing? I think it is a good thing.
Several members interjected.
Mr M. McGOWAN: I think it is
a good thing. I think that is a very odd interjection. I actually think it is a
good thing that local small businesses are booming.
Ms L. Mettam: I didn't
say that.
Mr M. McGOWAN: Whatever you
said.
The SPEAKER: Member for
Vasse, just do not say anything.
Mr M. McGOWAN: We have worked
with the commonwealth to put in place the building bonus—the first
state in Australia. We have provided finance for the construction of new homes—that
is up 144 per cent on 2019. In October, building approvals were up 96 per cent
on the same time in 2019, the highest growth easily of all the states. In terms
of jobs, Western Australia has the highest participation rate; it has the
second lowest unemployment rate in the country by 0.1 of one per cent; 87 per
cent of the jobs lost have been recovered; and 63 000 jobs have been created
since we came to office. We have made a huge investment as part of our recovery
plan in a whole range of things—TAFE capital works, schools and the
like—all over Western Australia. Obviously, a range of our important
projects are coming to fruition at exactly the right time. Regarding Metronet,
today we were out at the Thornlie–Cockburn Link, at which nine projects
are currently under construction. We have planning reforms, new approval
pathways and less red tape. On Monday, we launched our climate policy. We also
have the LNG Jobs Taskforce, the future battery industry strategy, the hydrogen
strategy, the defence industry strategy and a range of other important
strategies to create jobs across the state.
What is clear is that this
government is keeping our state safe and strong. In the midst of a worldwide
pandemic that is creating havoc all over the globe, Western Australia is a beacon
of people who have done the right thing in difficult circumstances and
businesses that we have kept open in the midst of difficult circumstances
around the country and around the world.