❓ Mr Waldron questions the Premier about cuts to regional Department of Agriculture staff, contrasting it with increased metropolitan staff, challenging the government's commitment to regional WA. The Premier deflects, blaming the previous government's financial mismanagement and the need for budget cuts across all departments.
AnsweredQoN 484Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, REGIONAL FULL-TIME STAFF 484. Mr WALDRON to the Premier: The Government’s pre-election policy document, “a fair go for regional WA” acknowledges that a decline in public sector employees accelerates the decline of regional communities, and promises to restore the State Government’s role in rural Western Australia. (1) Why has the Government cut the number of full-time staff at most regional offices of the Department of Agriculture? (2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, REGIONAL FULL-TIME STAFF
The Government’s pre-election policy document, “a fair go for regional WA” acknowledges that a decline in public sector employees accelerates the decline of regional communities, and promises to restore the State Government’s role in rural Western Australia. (1) Why has the Government cut the number of full-time staff at most regional offices of the Department of Agriculture? (2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
(1) Why has the Government cut the number of full-time staff at most regional offices of the Department of Agriculture? (2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
(2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
(1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, REGIONAL FULL-TIME STAFF
The Government’s pre-election policy document, “a fair go for regional WA” acknowledges that a decline in public sector employees accelerates the decline of regional communities, and promises to restore the State Government’s role in rural Western Australia. (1) Why has the Government cut the number of full-time staff at most regional offices of the Department of Agriculture? (2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
(1) Why has the Government cut the number of full-time staff at most regional offices of the Department of Agriculture? (2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
(2) As staff numbers at the department’s metropolitan offices have increased this year by 58, is transferring staff from country to city offices consistent with the Government’s fair go for regional Western Australia policy? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
(1)-(2) I remind the member for Wagin - I do so in the spirit in which he asked the question - that when we came to power in February this year and looked at the books we inherited from the previous Government, we learnt there were serious problems. Liberal Party members opposite scoff. That indicates - Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Barron-Sullivan: We gave you a $220 million surplus. Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: I remind members opposite that the position of this State when we came to office in February this year was serious. Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Day: It was healthy. The State has a AAA credit rating. Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Barron-Sullivan: When did you first know the revenue estimates were being changed? Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: Which revenue estimates? Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Barron-Sullivan: The revenue estimates for the State. Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: We based our revenue estimates during the election campaign on what had been published. I remember the first meeting I had with a senior public servant. This is a beauty. He told me that the department was halfway through a major project. Everything had been geared up but, unfortunately, there were no funds in the forward estimates for the second half of the project. That is the way the previous Government operated. It did it that way because - I say this very carefully - it deliberately mislead the people of Western Australia about what it could do as a Government. I emphasise “deliberately”. The former Government presided over an enormous deceit of the voters and the people of Western Australia. We worked out the extent of that deceit when we came to power, and we came into the Parliament and told the people that it posed a problem for us and that we must fix it. That is the preface of my answer to the member for Wagin’s question. We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
We have considered all the government departments throughout Western Australia. We have looked closely at the value we are getting from the work of those departments, both overall and as a result of particular programs. It has not been easy, and we have made $852 million of cutbacks throughout the government system of Western Australia. The Department of Agriculture must carry its share of those cuts. We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
We are committed to regional Western Australia. Greater than a fair share of the capital works program is for regional communities. We have put in place a special regional investment fund, which is dedicated to the building of new infrastructure to create new jobs in the regions. That fund will make sure that services to regions are delivered properly. Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Omodei: What about the Mandurah railway line? Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: I am sure the member for Warren-Blackwood will acknowledge that the Minister for State Development, the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, the Minister for Forestry and the Minister for the South West have done an outstanding job in making sure that jobs are available in his community in the face of our policy changes. Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Day: When will those people know what will happen with their redundancies? The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
The SPEAKER: Member for Darling Range! Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: We have a cargo cult opposition. It thinks that money drops from the sky like manna from heaven - money drops down, and we grab it and use it. Money comes from the people of Western Australia. It does not drop like manna from heaven. It is taxpayers’ money that is given to the Government of Western Australia to spend effectively. Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Mr Day interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Darling Range to order for the second time. Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
Dr GALLOP: The rate of growth of expenses under the previous Government was not sustainable. We have had to pull that back. That is having an impact on the Department of Agriculture and other departments in this State. It is in the interests of rural and metropolitan communities that we have a responsible budget based on sustainable foundations. We must have that so that we can build a future for Western Australia that will not be hijacked by the sorts of problems we saw when we came to government in February. We do not want an unsustainable future based on deficits and rising debts. That was our inheritance, and we are coming to grips with it.
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