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‘Major focus’: West Australian Premier Mark McGowan makes big state budget promise on cost of living

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan has given an indication his state budget this week will deliver big changes for your hip pocket.

RBA is ‘behind the curve’ of raising rates

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan has promised his state budget this week will “focus on the cost of living” and deliver a surplus.

The state budget will be handed down on Thursday, with Mr McGowan vowing to bring good news to families struggling.

“The cost of living will be a major focus of the budget and we have greater capacity because of our financial management over the course of our time in office,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

“We kept the mining industry open without interruption during the course of the pandemic and the fact we secured the GST deal from the Commonwealth (means) we have greater capacity than the other states.

“So we’ll hand down the budget on Thursday, but people can rest assured it will pay down debt, it will deliver surpluses and it will have a real focus on the cost of living.”

Premier Mark McGowan has promised to deliver good news when he hands down the state budget. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images
Premier Mark McGowan has promised to deliver good news when he hands down the state budget. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

His comments come after the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted interest rates by 0.25 per cent last week, with a warning more pain was to come.

Inflation is also at 5.1 per cent, with many people expressing concerns about the cost of essentials such as groceries and petrol.

Following years of complaining about getting a bad deal on the GST, WA now gets 70 cents for every dollar after Scott Morrison reworked the system when he was the federal treasurer in 2018.

The Prime Minister has been taking up every opportunity to remind WA of what he did ahead of the federal election, assuring WA voters that he has no plans to change the system despite complaints from other states.

Originally published as ‘Major focus’: West Australian Premier Mark McGowan makes big state budget promise on cost of living

Original URL: https://www.themercury.com.au/news/western-australia/major-focus-west-australian-premier-mark-mcgowan-makes-big-state-budget-promise-on-cost-of-living/news-story/4d88f701ac673928fc8c1618a3493edc