❓ Opposition questions the Premier on breaking his promise of no deficits, despite higher than expected revenue. The Premier blames falling iron ore prices and unfair GST distribution, projecting a return to surplus within a few years.
AnsweredQoN 405Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
STATE
BUDGET — DEFICIT
405. Mr B.S. WYATT to the
Premier:
I refer to the Treasurer's announcement that we will
have a deficit this year, a deficit of $2.7 billion next year and a deficit the
year after that. Given when the Premier promised, ''I am not going to
lead a government that goes into deficit'', the actual revenue was $4.6 billion
greater than the revenue the Premier expected when he made that statement, why
has the Premier broken his promise?
BUDGET — DEFICIT
405. Mr B.S. WYATT to the
Premier:
I refer to the Treasurer's announcement that we will
have a deficit this year, a deficit of $2.7 billion next year and a deficit the
year after that. Given when the Premier promised, ''I am not going to
lead a government that goes into deficit'', the actual revenue was $4.6 billion
greater than the revenue the Premier expected when he made that statement, why
has the Premier broken his promise?
AnswerView source ↗
If we received, I think, even 50 cents in the dollar GST, we
would probably be in surplus now or pretty close to it. If we were to get just
50 cents in the dollar, when every other state gets over 90 cents, we would be
in surplus today, even with the fall in iron ore prices. Mr Speaker, we would
be in surplus. No-one could have anticipated the fall in iron ore prices and
the combination of those two factors that has put us into a deficit. My
previous comments are right. If a government planned to run deficits, no, I
would not lead a government that would do that. Under no circumstance could
this position have been avoided. With 30 cents in the dollar and a 60 per cent
fall —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Bassendean, that is enough. I call you to order for the first time.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : Under no circumstance could this deficit have been avoided. I
have a view about forward estimates; they are estimates. They are not the
actual budget; they are the best estimates that Treasury can make. Even on the
very conservative assumption made on the iron ore price and, indeed, what was
expected to happen with the GST, we return within two years or three years to
very, very strong surpluses—to over $2 billion. That shows the
fundamental flaw in the GST system—that is, it is pro-cyclical rather
than anti-cyclical. I will continue, as will the Treasurer, to seek reform in
the GST. It is a zero-sum game. If we go from a deficit of $2 billion to a
surplus of $2 billion in a couple of years, the other states have net losses of
$4 billion that they can share amongst themselves. That will be the reality. So
the system is broken. The forward estimates—the best estimates by
Treasury—show us returning to a strong surplus. The estimated $2.7 million
deficit for next year, obviously, if we succeed in selling assets during that
year, will be significantly reduced by that amount.
would probably be in surplus now or pretty close to it. If we were to get just
50 cents in the dollar, when every other state gets over 90 cents, we would be
in surplus today, even with the fall in iron ore prices. Mr Speaker, we would
be in surplus. No-one could have anticipated the fall in iron ore prices and
the combination of those two factors that has put us into a deficit. My
previous comments are right. If a government planned to run deficits, no, I
would not lead a government that would do that. Under no circumstance could
this position have been avoided. With 30 cents in the dollar and a 60 per cent
fall —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Bassendean, that is enough. I call you to order for the first time.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : Under no circumstance could this deficit have been avoided. I
have a view about forward estimates; they are estimates. They are not the
actual budget; they are the best estimates that Treasury can make. Even on the
very conservative assumption made on the iron ore price and, indeed, what was
expected to happen with the GST, we return within two years or three years to
very, very strong surpluses—to over $2 billion. That shows the
fundamental flaw in the GST system—that is, it is pro-cyclical rather
than anti-cyclical. I will continue, as will the Treasurer, to seek reform in
the GST. It is a zero-sum game. If we go from a deficit of $2 billion to a
surplus of $2 billion in a couple of years, the other states have net losses of
$4 billion that they can share amongst themselves. That will be the reality. So
the system is broken. The forward estimates—the best estimates by
Treasury—show us returning to a strong surplus. The estimated $2.7 million
deficit for next year, obviously, if we succeed in selling assets during that
year, will be significantly reduced by that amount.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.