❓ The Premier outlines the Cook Labor government's initiatives to address housing shortages and diversify the economy in Pilbara towns like Karratha, highlighting partnerships with businesses like Perdaman to build homes for local workers and investments in infrastructure and economic diversification.
AnsweredQoN 507Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
STATE
DEVELOPMENT — PILBARA
507. Mr K.J.J. MICHEL to the Premier:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's commitment to
strengthening regional communities.
(1) Can the
Premier outline to the house how this government is helping regional
communities such as Karratha to create more housing for local workers?
(2) Can the
Premier advise how the Cook Labor government's vision to diversify the
economy will help to grow regional towns such as those in the Pilbara?
DEVELOPMENT — PILBARA
507. Mr K.J.J. MICHEL to the Premier:
I refer to the Cook Labor government's commitment to
strengthening regional communities.
(1) Can the
Premier outline to the house how this government is helping regional
communities such as Karratha to create more housing for local workers?
(2) Can the
Premier advise how the Cook Labor government's vision to diversify the
economy will help to grow regional towns such as those in the Pilbara?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2)
I love the question from the member for Pilbara, and thank him very much for
having us there over the last few days. I will also just correct the record as
I misspoke in my answer to the last question. It was not Woodside's
seventy-fifth anniversary; it was its seventieth.
It was the greatest of pleasures
to be in the Pilbara once again with the member for Pilbara. Just last week, I was
sharing details of my last trip up north with my good friend and colleague the member
for Pilbara when we visited Tom Price and Paraburdoo with the Minister for
Health. This time, we went to Karratha, and I took the whole cabinet with me.
It is a wonderful town that will only get better, thanks to the strong advocacy
of its local member. We all know that Karratha is synonymous with the mining
and LNG industries. Like much of the
Pilbara, it is also synonymous with fly-in fly-out workforces. After all,
Karratha hosts the busiest airport in the state after Perth Airport; it
is a hive of activity.
What was clear from our visit is
that the economic potential of the Pilbara has not peaked—far from it.
In coming years, we will see more economic growth through clean energy,
critical minerals demand, increased tourism and advanced manufacturing,
particularly in the areas of ammonia, hydrogen and other elements of the
renewable energy future.
The Perdaman urea plant project in
Karratha is a great example of the future of industry in the north west. These
industries do not grow only on the work of fly-in fly-out workers. We want
local workforces. We want them to be in the community, to bring their families
to be members of that community and to play and
spend their incomes in the community. Of course, for that to happen we need
more housing. We want to build up the towns that post economic growth
and continue to make them strong and thriving communities. That is what we are
doing in Karratha. Of course there are particular challenges with residential
construction in those towns. We know that the cost of building homes is
particularly high. We know that the price of delivering housing for workers for
many businesses is very difficult.
Therefore, it is remarkable when
businesses and governments can partner to deliver 100 homes in a single
contract for the people of Western Australia. We are unlocking 174 lots of
development-ready land in Madigan in Karratha. Of those lots, 100 will be sold
to Perdaman at a bulk purchase price on the proviso that the homes are built
and will be used by local workers alone. Perdaman will build 100 homes over
five years for its local workers and families on the Karratha urea project.
Madam Speaker, if you know Vikas Rambal like we all know him, I do not think it
is going to take five years. He has extraordinary ambitions and he delivers.
The remaining lots will be prepared for release on the private market, further easing housing pressures in Karratha. The $120 million
investment in the local housing that this represents means that we will
see an increasing capability and capacity of residential construction in
Karratha, and I think we will see a significant boost in economic activity.
This is all part of our massive
investment in regional WA in recent years—roads, bridges, ports, energy
infrastructure—and there is more in the pipeline, particularly for
hospitals. We have invested heavily in economic diversification. We are
ensuring that regional communities thrive in concert with the regional economy.
As we know, if we are going to grow our economy, we have to grow our regional
centres. To do that, we have to attract workers, and workers need housing, and
communities need that housing in order to thrive and be resilient and strong.
That is why my government is investing heavily to make sure that we support regional
communities to continue to drive jobs and the economy.
I love the question from the member for Pilbara, and thank him very much for
having us there over the last few days. I will also just correct the record as
I misspoke in my answer to the last question. It was not Woodside's
seventy-fifth anniversary; it was its seventieth.
It was the greatest of pleasures
to be in the Pilbara once again with the member for Pilbara. Just last week, I was
sharing details of my last trip up north with my good friend and colleague the member
for Pilbara when we visited Tom Price and Paraburdoo with the Minister for
Health. This time, we went to Karratha, and I took the whole cabinet with me.
It is a wonderful town that will only get better, thanks to the strong advocacy
of its local member. We all know that Karratha is synonymous with the mining
and LNG industries. Like much of the
Pilbara, it is also synonymous with fly-in fly-out workforces. After all,
Karratha hosts the busiest airport in the state after Perth Airport; it
is a hive of activity.
What was clear from our visit is
that the economic potential of the Pilbara has not peaked—far from it.
In coming years, we will see more economic growth through clean energy,
critical minerals demand, increased tourism and advanced manufacturing,
particularly in the areas of ammonia, hydrogen and other elements of the
renewable energy future.
The Perdaman urea plant project in
Karratha is a great example of the future of industry in the north west. These
industries do not grow only on the work of fly-in fly-out workers. We want
local workforces. We want them to be in the community, to bring their families
to be members of that community and to play and
spend their incomes in the community. Of course, for that to happen we need
more housing. We want to build up the towns that post economic growth
and continue to make them strong and thriving communities. That is what we are
doing in Karratha. Of course there are particular challenges with residential
construction in those towns. We know that the cost of building homes is
particularly high. We know that the price of delivering housing for workers for
many businesses is very difficult.
Therefore, it is remarkable when
businesses and governments can partner to deliver 100 homes in a single
contract for the people of Western Australia. We are unlocking 174 lots of
development-ready land in Madigan in Karratha. Of those lots, 100 will be sold
to Perdaman at a bulk purchase price on the proviso that the homes are built
and will be used by local workers alone. Perdaman will build 100 homes over
five years for its local workers and families on the Karratha urea project.
Madam Speaker, if you know Vikas Rambal like we all know him, I do not think it
is going to take five years. He has extraordinary ambitions and he delivers.
The remaining lots will be prepared for release on the private market, further easing housing pressures in Karratha. The $120 million
investment in the local housing that this represents means that we will
see an increasing capability and capacity of residential construction in
Karratha, and I think we will see a significant boost in economic activity.
This is all part of our massive
investment in regional WA in recent years—roads, bridges, ports, energy
infrastructure—and there is more in the pipeline, particularly for
hospitals. We have invested heavily in economic diversification. We are
ensuring that regional communities thrive in concert with the regional economy.
As we know, if we are going to grow our economy, we have to grow our regional
centres. To do that, we have to attract workers, and workers need housing, and
communities need that housing in order to thrive and be resilient and strong.
That is why my government is investing heavily to make sure that we support regional
communities to continue to drive jobs and the economy.
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.