We’re ready to let the money flow, says Mark McGowan

Mark McGowan has promised the biggest infrastructure spend in state history in his gov­ernment’s fourth budget on Thursday.

WA Premier Mark McGowan at the Bellevue Railcar facility site on Wednesday. Picture: Colin Murty

Mark McGowan has promised the biggest infrastructure spend in state history in his gov­ernment’s fourth budget on Thursday.

Soaring iron ore prices have helped to make it possible for West Australian Labor to offer household bill relief and create thousands of construction jobs.

The Premier said the budget would pour money into economic stimulus by building trains and roads, and rebuilding hospitals, police stations, water infrastructure and ports.

WA is widely expected to be the only state to forecast a surplus in 2020-21. Less than five months from the state election, Mr McGowan on Wednesday defended his government’s decision not to plunge the state deep into deficit in the pursuit of economic recovery.

“We have been the government with the best financial management in Australia now for the past three years and you will see that continue,” he said.

“Debt will increase because revenue has gone down but the state government, like all gov­ernments, needs to have the ­capacity to respond if a second wave of corona­virus comes along or if there is a further economic problem. The idea that somehow bankrupting the state is a good thing is wrong. You have to actually have capacity to deal with problems as they arise.”

While sections of the WA economy remain weak since the coronavirus pandemic hit, the McGowan government acted early to ensure the resources sector could continue to operate with exemptions and safeguards.

On the edge of Perth, a golf resort became a travel bubble for mine workers. The result has been a multi-billion-dollar benefit to WA and the commonwealth as iron ore prices surged to their highest levels in six years.

Mr McGowan said WA’s ability to keep mining had been good for the nation. He stressed that a second wave of coronavirus in WA would put all that at risk. “But for the borders we put in place, the country would be in trouble,” he said. The government on Wednesday announced a plan to fast-track thousands of West Australians into the construction industry via a four-week training course. Graduates would be deemed suitable for “entry-level” jobs on the $6.5bn road and rail projects, including a network of passenger trains across Perth.

The course is free for jobseekers under 25. Others will be charged $191.

The Infrastructure Ready Skill Set will teach basic measurement and calculation skills relevant to construction and focus on safe work practices. Participants will learn skills to operate small plant and equipment used on construction projects.

The plan was unveiled amid concern from business that WA’s closed border was beginning to create skills shortages. “My government’s No 1 priority has ­always been WA jobs and supporting industry in ways that create a pipeline of jobs, help build better infrastructure and boost the local economy,” he said.

Education and Training Minister Sue Ellery said the fast-track program had been developed in consultation with industry “to engage displaced workers, including young people and mature age workers to meet immediate and emerging skills requirements”.