❓ Mrs. Stojkovski asks the Premier about the WA government's plan to provide economic relief to households, particularly vulnerable groups, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Premier outlines a support package including freezing fees and charges, doubling energy assistance, and previous stimulus measures.
AnsweredQoN 154Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
CORONAVIRUS —
GOVERNMENT RESPONSE
154. Mrs J.M.C. STOJKOVSKI to the Premier:
Before I ask my question, I take a moment
to wish everybody a very happy St Patrick's Day.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mrs J.M.C. STOJKOVSKI : I refer
to the state government's response to the impact of COVID-19 on the Western Australian economy. Can the Premier outline
to the house what this government is doing to provide relief to Western Australian
households during this uncertain time and, in particular, support to vulnerable
Western Australians such as pensioners and carers?
GOVERNMENT RESPONSE
154. Mrs J.M.C. STOJKOVSKI to the Premier:
Before I ask my question, I take a moment
to wish everybody a very happy St Patrick's Day.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mrs J.M.C. STOJKOVSKI : I refer
to the state government's response to the impact of COVID-19 on the Western Australian economy. Can the Premier outline
to the house what this government is doing to provide relief to Western Australian
households during this uncertain time and, in particular, support to vulnerable
Western Australians such as pensioners and carers?
AnswerView source ↗
Our
state is confronting an economic challenge that we have never seen before.
Although our first priority is of c ourse the health and wellbeing of Western
Australians and slowing the spread of COVID-19, we also recognise that the
impact to our economy is going to be immense. This will be an uncertain time
for businesses and an anxious time for workers. It will put pressure on
households. That is why the immediate support package that we announced yesterday aims to provide those businesses and
households with some support and assistance. It is a first step. There will be more to come. What we announced yesterday builds on the stimulus
measures that we announced in recent months. I remind the Parliament of those
measures: a school and hospital maintenance program of $300 million; cuts to
TAFE fees of over $54 million; a social and affordable housing package of over
$220 million; and rebates on stamp duty for multistorey investments. All that
comes in at a cost of $760 million worth of stimulus measures that we have put
in place in the last few months.
Along with that, and all that was in
mind yesterday, the government announced a further response. It comes at a further
cost of $607 million. It is the biggest support package of its kind in Western Australia
in living memory. Providing relief to households and businesses, it is at the
heart of this immediate response. We are spending more than $400 million to
keep fees and charges at their current levels for the next financial year. That
means that there will be no increase in household fees and charges from now
until at least 1 July 2021. It will cover all fees and charges, including
electricity, water, motor vehicle charges, the emergency services levy and
public transport fares. It will be the first time in 15 years that this has
been done in Western Australia, and it can only happen because of this
government's discipline and responsible financial management. We are
also doubling the energy assistance payment
to $600 for eligible concession cardholders. This will provide relief to around
300 000 Western Australian households. What is important about this
measure is that the increase to the payment will be front loaded. That means
that those households will have an additional $300 credit on their power bills.
For many, that will mean they will not have to pay anything on their power bill
for the remainder of the financial year. Some will have credit to carry over to
their next set of bills. For others, their bills will be very, very small. This
is particularly targeted to vulnerable Western Australians, including the
elderly, and it gives our local businesses more spending capacity.
There
is more to do. Work continues on developing further policies and initiatives to
roll out in the short term to support
the economy and support the community. We did the hard work to put our budget
in a strong financial position . This
allows us to respond as we have and as we will continue to do. I call on every
part of the Western Australian community to help us—banks, local
governments and major landlords. We are in this together. Banks, landlords and
local governments need to be kind to their customers and ratepayers. What is
the point of bankrupting a small businessperson in this environment? There is
no point; it will just make it worse. There is no doubt that the coming weeks
and months will be very difficult, but we will get through this and, until we
do, we need all hands on deck.
state is confronting an economic challenge that we have never seen before.
Although our first priority is of c ourse the health and wellbeing of Western
Australians and slowing the spread of COVID-19, we also recognise that the
impact to our economy is going to be immense. This will be an uncertain time
for businesses and an anxious time for workers. It will put pressure on
households. That is why the immediate support package that we announced yesterday aims to provide those businesses and
households with some support and assistance. It is a first step. There will be more to come. What we announced yesterday builds on the stimulus
measures that we announced in recent months. I remind the Parliament of those
measures: a school and hospital maintenance program of $300 million; cuts to
TAFE fees of over $54 million; a social and affordable housing package of over
$220 million; and rebates on stamp duty for multistorey investments. All that
comes in at a cost of $760 million worth of stimulus measures that we have put
in place in the last few months.
Along with that, and all that was in
mind yesterday, the government announced a further response. It comes at a further
cost of $607 million. It is the biggest support package of its kind in Western Australia
in living memory. Providing relief to households and businesses, it is at the
heart of this immediate response. We are spending more than $400 million to
keep fees and charges at their current levels for the next financial year. That
means that there will be no increase in household fees and charges from now
until at least 1 July 2021. It will cover all fees and charges, including
electricity, water, motor vehicle charges, the emergency services levy and
public transport fares. It will be the first time in 15 years that this has
been done in Western Australia, and it can only happen because of this
government's discipline and responsible financial management. We are
also doubling the energy assistance payment
to $600 for eligible concession cardholders. This will provide relief to around
300 000 Western Australian households. What is important about this
measure is that the increase to the payment will be front loaded. That means
that those households will have an additional $300 credit on their power bills.
For many, that will mean they will not have to pay anything on their power bill
for the remainder of the financial year. Some will have credit to carry over to
their next set of bills. For others, their bills will be very, very small. This
is particularly targeted to vulnerable Western Australians, including the
elderly, and it gives our local businesses more spending capacity.
There
is more to do. Work continues on developing further policies and initiatives to
roll out in the short term to support
the economy and support the community. We did the hard work to put our budget
in a strong financial position . This
allows us to respond as we have and as we will continue to do. I call on every
part of the Western Australian community to help us—banks, local
governments and major landlords. We are in this together. Banks, landlords and
local governments need to be kind to their customers and ratepayers. What is
the point of bankrupting a small businessperson in this environment? There is
no point; it will just make it worse. There is no doubt that the coming weeks
and months will be very difficult, but we will get through this and, until we
do, we need all hands on deck.
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