❓ The Premier defends the government's opposition to privatising Western Power, citing its importance as essential infrastructure and its contribution to public services. The response also attacks the Leader of the Opposition's stance on privatisation.
AnsweredQoN 1252Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Will the Premier outline why the Government is opposed to the privatisation of Western Power? Dr G.I. GALLOP
AnswerView source ↗
The Government of Western Australia supports the continued public ownership of Western Power. We do so because in a State like Western Australia it is very important that essential infrastructure such as Western Power is publicly owned. Secondly, we note that Western Power is playing a role in society by providing the people with a dividend, which is spent on core services such as health, education and police. There is no doubt that those services are this Government’s budget priorities. A total of 88 per cent of all extra revenue provided by the people of Western Australia to the Government last year went into health, education and police services. As the Deputy Premier and Minister for Energy outlined, there is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition has an agenda to privatise the whole or parts of Western Power. It is interesting to note the Leader of the Opposition’s comment last week in The West Australian that he did not think people were spooked by privatisation any more. The people may not be spooked by privatisation any more. However, I refer to comments by his colleague the member for Kalgoorlie. It would appear that the member for Kalgoorlie is spooked by privatisation. In a letter to the Kalgoorlie Miner of 29 October on the Liberal Party’s approach to privatisation, the member for Kalgoorlie said - The story arose when a journalist from the West Australian asked Colin Barnett if he would absolutely rule out privatisation of any of our State’s assets in the future. To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room. The letter from the member for Kalgoorlie went on to say - However, it is my personal view that privatisation is not necessarily the panacea for all problems, and I am yet to be convinced of the benefits of privatising any current West Australian assets. Mr Speaker, we flushed out - Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: The Government of Western Australia supports the continued public ownership of Western Power. We do so because in a State like Western Australia it is very important that essential infrastructure such as Western Power is publicly owned. Secondly, we note that Western Power is playing a role in society by providing the people with a dividend, which is spent on core services such as health, education and police. There is no doubt that those services are this Government’s budget priorities. A total of 88 per cent of all extra revenue provided by the people of Western Australia to the Government last year went into health, education and police services. As the Deputy Premier and Minister for Energy outlined, there is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition has an agenda to privatise the whole or parts of Western Power. It is interesting to note the Leader of the Opposition’s comment last week in The West Australian that he did not think people were spooked by privatisation any more. The people may not be spooked by privatisation any more. However, I refer to comments by his colleague the member for Kalgoorlie. It would appear that the member for Kalgoorlie is spooked by privatisation. In a letter to the Kalgoorlie Miner of 29 October on the Liberal Party’s approach to privatisation, the member for Kalgoorlie said - The story arose when a journalist from the West Australian asked Colin Barnett if he would absolutely rule out privatisation of any of our State’s assets in the future. To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room. The letter from the member for Kalgoorlie went on to say - However, it is my personal view that privatisation is not necessarily the panacea for all problems, and I am yet to be convinced of the benefits of privatising any current West Australian assets. Mr Speaker, we flushed out - Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
The Government of Western Australia supports the continued public ownership of Western Power. We do so because in a State like Western Australia it is very important that essential infrastructure such as Western Power is publicly owned. Secondly, we note that Western Power is playing a role in society by providing the people with a dividend, which is spent on core services such as health, education and police. There is no doubt that those services are this Government’s budget priorities. A total of 88 per cent of all extra revenue provided by the people of Western Australia to the Government last year went into health, education and police services. As the Deputy Premier and Minister for Energy outlined, there is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition has an agenda to privatise the whole or parts of Western Power. It is interesting to note the Leader of the Opposition’s comment last week in The West Australian that he did not think people were spooked by privatisation any more. The people may not be spooked by privatisation any more. However, I refer to comments by his colleague the member for Kalgoorlie. It would appear that the member for Kalgoorlie is spooked by privatisation. In a letter to the Kalgoorlie Miner of 29 October on the Liberal Party’s approach to privatisation, the member for Kalgoorlie said - The story arose when a journalist from the West Australian asked Colin Barnett if he would absolutely rule out privatisation of any of our State’s assets in the future. To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room. The letter from the member for Kalgoorlie went on to say - However, it is my personal view that privatisation is not necessarily the panacea for all problems, and I am yet to be convinced of the benefits of privatising any current West Australian assets. Mr Speaker, we flushed out - Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room.
Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: The Government of Western Australia supports the continued public ownership of Western Power. We do so because in a State like Western Australia it is very important that essential infrastructure such as Western Power is publicly owned. Secondly, we note that Western Power is playing a role in society by providing the people with a dividend, which is spent on core services such as health, education and police. There is no doubt that those services are this Government’s budget priorities. A total of 88 per cent of all extra revenue provided by the people of Western Australia to the Government last year went into health, education and police services. As the Deputy Premier and Minister for Energy outlined, there is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition has an agenda to privatise the whole or parts of Western Power. It is interesting to note the Leader of the Opposition’s comment last week in The West Australian that he did not think people were spooked by privatisation any more. The people may not be spooked by privatisation any more. However, I refer to comments by his colleague the member for Kalgoorlie. It would appear that the member for Kalgoorlie is spooked by privatisation. In a letter to the Kalgoorlie Miner of 29 October on the Liberal Party’s approach to privatisation, the member for Kalgoorlie said - The story arose when a journalist from the West Australian asked Colin Barnett if he would absolutely rule out privatisation of any of our State’s assets in the future. To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room. The letter from the member for Kalgoorlie went on to say - However, it is my personal view that privatisation is not necessarily the panacea for all problems, and I am yet to be convinced of the benefits of privatising any current West Australian assets. Mr Speaker, we flushed out - Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
The Government of Western Australia supports the continued public ownership of Western Power. We do so because in a State like Western Australia it is very important that essential infrastructure such as Western Power is publicly owned. Secondly, we note that Western Power is playing a role in society by providing the people with a dividend, which is spent on core services such as health, education and police. There is no doubt that those services are this Government’s budget priorities. A total of 88 per cent of all extra revenue provided by the people of Western Australia to the Government last year went into health, education and police services. As the Deputy Premier and Minister for Energy outlined, there is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition has an agenda to privatise the whole or parts of Western Power. It is interesting to note the Leader of the Opposition’s comment last week in The West Australian that he did not think people were spooked by privatisation any more. The people may not be spooked by privatisation any more. However, I refer to comments by his colleague the member for Kalgoorlie. It would appear that the member for Kalgoorlie is spooked by privatisation. In a letter to the Kalgoorlie Miner of 29 October on the Liberal Party’s approach to privatisation, the member for Kalgoorlie said - The story arose when a journalist from the West Australian asked Colin Barnett if he would absolutely rule out privatisation of any of our State’s assets in the future. To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room. The letter from the member for Kalgoorlie went on to say - However, it is my personal view that privatisation is not necessarily the panacea for all problems, and I am yet to be convinced of the benefits of privatising any current West Australian assets. Mr Speaker, we flushed out - Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
To which he replied “No”. Before something can become Liberal Party policy it must first be debated and voted on by the party room.
Mr M.J. Birney interjected. Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
Mr D.F. Barron-Sullivan interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Kalgoorlie and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
Dr G.I. GALLOP: We flushed out the Leader of the Opposition on privatisation last week and now we have seen the reaction of his own party members on this issue. The member for Kalgoorlie was clearly sending out a message to other members of the Liberal Party that he did not agree with the Leader of the Opposition. Of course, that is indicative of the current state of the Liberal Party. There are three different factions in the Liberal Party today: the Leader of the Opposition and his dutiful assistant the member for South Perth; a second faction comprising the rest of the backbench in the Legislative Assembly; and a third faction comprising members of the Liberal Party in the other place, who show complete contempt for the Leader of the Opposition. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
There is no doubt whatsoever that the Leader of the Opposition supports privatisation. He is on record on that issue when he was in government and he is now on record on the front page of The West Australian . No matter what the member for Kalgoorlie says, the people of Western Australia know that it is the policy of the Liberal Party in Western Australia today. The people of Western Australia will make a choice at the next election. I look forward to campaigning on behalf of the Australian Labor Party to outline our position in defence of public assets against the Liberals. The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
The SPEAKER: I call to order the member for Warren-Blackwood.
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