WA Labor and Liberals trade barbs as election campaigns launch half an hour apart

The WA Liberal and Labor parties officially launched their respective 2025 election campaigns at events half-an-hour and three kilometres apart on Sunday.

Premier Roger Cook promised to gift eligible WA households thousands under a new home battery rebate scheme and pledged to turbocharge WA’s manufacturing base under a plan titled “Made in WA”.

At the same time, Liberal leader Libby Mettam vowed to reverse Labor’s one vote, one value laws in the upper house and go back to basics by resolving problems in health, housing, crime and energy.

Labor chose the Riverview Room at Optus Stadium, a few hundred metres from its controversial $217 million Burswood racetrack for its gathering of party faithful.

Over the river Liberal party members and MPs packed the 240-seat Royale Theatre in Northbridge where Libby Mettam’s pitch began half an hour after Cook’s at 10.30am.

Premier Roger Cook at his party’s campaign launch on Sunday. Credit: Trevor Collens

Both launches were filled with barbs toward the other side.

Liberal speakers such as deputy leader Steve Martin accused Labor of squandering the iron ore and GST boom and Cottesloe candidate Sandra Brewer said the Liberal team had real-world experience and were not from a “bureaucratic fantasy land” and had real jobs.

Perth Lord Mayor and Churchlands candidate Basil Zempilas said Labor claimed to have a vision for the state but could only point to big projects like the costly Metronet because they were failing the basics.

Leader Libby Mettam with candidates at the WA Liberal Party Campaign launch at The Royale theatre, Northbridge.Credit: Colin Murty

During her Welcome to Country at Labor’s launch, Noongar elder and self-confessed lifelong Labor voter Colleen Hayward criticised Mettam’s decision not to stand in front of the Aboriginal flag.

Treasurer Rita Saffioti was left to stick the boot in to the Liberals’ candidate preselections.

Labor’s home battery promise

• A $387 million scheme to provide rebates of $5000 or $7500 regionally to install home batteries on homes.
• A $10,000 loan will also be available for middle to low-income earners to install a battery. 
• Very similar to the Greens 2017 home battery commitment.
• The government will also establish a $50 million battery manufacturing program to build the batteries in the state.

“I’ve been around politics for a while. The Liberals have always set a very low bar for its candidates but in 2025 the bar is on the floor, and somehow they’ve managed to dive underneath it,” she said.

Labor’s pitch

Cook entered the room alongside his wife Carly to INXS’ Don’t Change where he was greeted by some familiar faces former premiers Mark McGowan and Peter Dowding and former Labor minister Jim McGinty.

He opened his speech by talking up the state of the WA economy and the inroads the government has made in diversifying the state’s mining-reliant economy.

Jim McGinty and former Premier Mark McGowan at the launch at Optus Stadium.Credit: Trevor Collens

“During our time in office, the value added to our economy by industries other than mining has grown by $80 billion a year, to put that into perspective that’s like adding two Tasmanias to our economy every year,” he said.

Cook then pitched the party’s Made in WA plan, which has been stitched together from an array of recent promises like the pledge to manufacture transmission towers in Forrestfield and Bunbury.

WA Liberal leader Libby Mettam with daughter Bianca and granddaughter Remmy. Credit: Colin Murty

“Now, I know we’re an export state, but we should never export jobs and projects that we can do ourselves.”

He also promised $50 million to kickstart battery manufacturing in the state to create the batteries necessary for its $5000 rebate and $10,000 loan home battery incentive promise.

McGowan later backed his protégé, describing his and Saffioti’s speech as fantastic.

Liberals’ pitch

Mettam was introduced by her daughter Bianca and seven-month-old granddaughter Remmy.

She walked out to Panic! At the Disco’s High Hopes and immediately launched into a budgetary history lesson.

“Through no doing of their own, Labor in two terms of government has received $114 billion in GST grants and royalties compared with $57 billion the Barnett government received in its last two terms,” she said.

“The Labor campaign bangs on about their experience but the experience for West Australians is that they are now worse off after eight years of Labor mismanagement and I don’t think they want that experience to continue.”

Liberals upper house promise

• Reverse the one vote, one value laws for the upper house Labor introduced in 2021 and revert back to regional style voting areas

Mettam, who is also shadow health minister, lashed the government’s performance in health before turning to the $13.5 billion Metronet.

“You could get five new Fiona Stanley-style public hospitals for that $10 billion – but only if we build them of course. With Rita in charge, they’d cost $50 billion,” she said.

The newest commitment Mettam made was to reverse the changes to the Upper House voting that occurred shortly after Labor gained control of both houses in 2021.

Basil Zempilas at the WA Liberal Party Campaign launch at The Royale theatre, Northbridge.Credit: Colin Murty

“Twenty per cent of the state’s population have lost representation because of Labor’s grab for power,” she said.

“We will fix that and not add to the city-country divide at a time when regional Western Australia needs support.”