Heat for WA Liberal leader Zak Kirkup over coal policy

Several Liberal MPs say they are angry about their party’s energy policy, which they believe could make it harder at the upcoming election.

WA Opposition Leader Zak Kirkup. Picture: Colin Murty

West Australian Opposition Leader Zak Kirkup is facing a backlash from his parliamentary colleagues over his plan to close the state’s coal-fired power plants by 2025.

Mr Kirkup and energy spokesman David Honey unveiled the plan, which also includes a target for the state government to become a net-zero emitter by 2030, last week.

Several Liberal MPs contacted by The Australian say they are angry and confused by the policy, which they say was introduced without consultation and could make it harder to hold ground at the upcoming election.

The Liberal Party is at risk of seeing its already diminished parliamentary ranks further thinned at next month’s election, with Premier Mark McGowan enjoying record levels of popularity.

The energy policy has exasperated MPs, who believe the party should be focused on trying to “save the furniture” at next month’s election.

Many MPs are concerned that the energy policy, which has been lauded by environmental activist group The Conservation Council of WA, will sit uneasily with a large number of traditional Liberal voters. They fear the policy could make it more likely for those long-term Liberal voters happy with Mr McGowan’s handling of the pandemic to vote for Labor.

The plan has been savaged by Mr McGowan, who says it will cost jobs, drive up power bills and increase the risk of blackouts.

Liberal MPs also fear the party is doomed to lose in regional seats near the two state-owned coal-fired power stations that would close under the Liberals plan.

They suspect the marginal seat of Collie-Preston and the former Liberal stronghold of ­Murray-Wellington are now certain to be retained by Labor, which already holds an 11-seat majority.

Most Liberal MPs learned of the policy only as it was being ­disclosed by Mr Kirkup and Dr Honey.

One MP said he was certain seats would be lost over the policy, while another said it was unclear how the policy would deliver any political benefit to the party.

Several MPs said they had been inundated with calls and messages from Liberal Party members angry at the plan, which sits at odds with the climate path being trod by Scott Morrison.

Asked about the concerns of his MPs on Monday, Mr Kirkup said the policy, which includes plans for the development of a multi-billion-dollar hydrogen export facility, would deliver a net benefit for the state.

“The political rationale is bringing tens of thousands of jobs in manufacturing back to Aus­tralia,” he said.

“It’s about making sure we provide a plan to reduce the cost of power bills. It’s about making sure we unlock new industries and new markets like hydrogen, and ­making sure WA has a long-term future.”

In a sign it knows the March 13 election is a foregone conclusion, the oppositionhas started to warn voters of the risks of Labor taking “total control” of both houses of parliament.