❓ Opposition Leader Barnett questions Premier Gallop's truthfulness regarding the impact of a desalination plant on household water bills. The Premier deflects, citing past financial mismanagement by the opposition.
AnsweredQoN 602Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I ask a supplementary question. The Premier’s press release states - It is estimated that the impact on the average household bill will be less than a dollar a week. Point of Order Mr J.C. KOBELKE: Mr Speaker, I understand that the rules have been fairly consistently applied and that a supplementary question does not allow a preliminary statement to be made, which is exactly what the Leader of the Opposition has sought to do. The SPEAKER: Order! That is the case. I am sure the Leader of the Opposition is now going to ask the specific question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr C.J. BARNETT: I ask: when the Premier put out that press release, was he telling the truth, or is he telling the truth today, because what the Premier is saying today contradicts what he has said in his own press release? Dr G.I. GALLOP
AnswerView source ↗
The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
The SPEAKER: Order! That is the case. I am sure the Leader of the Opposition is now going to ask the specific question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr C.J. BARNETT: I ask: when the Premier put out that press release, was he telling the truth, or is he telling the truth today, because what the Premier is saying today contradicts what he has said in his own press release? Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
The SPEAKER: Order! That is the case. I am sure the Leader of the Opposition is now going to ask the specific question. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr C.J. BARNETT: I ask: when the Premier put out that press release, was he telling the truth, or is he telling the truth today, because what the Premier is saying today contradicts what he has said in his own press release? Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Dr G.I. GALLOP replied: The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
The people of Western Australia now have a Government that is open and accountable - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
The SPEAKER: Order! Have members finished with their interjections? The Premier. Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Dr G.I. GALLOP: I remember the first meeting that I attended as Premier of Western Australia at the Expenditure Review Committee when we were told that the CADCOM-DCAT project required an enormous amount of money that had not been put in the budget and that had not been disclosed to the people of Western Australia. That is what I call a lack of accountability. I will put it to the Leader of the Opposition in very simple terms. Each year, the Water Corporation has certain costs that it has to meet. We will be building a desalination plant, and that will be one of those costs. When it comes to the question of the tariffs that are selected for the consumers of water, that is an issue, as I said, that will take into account the circumstances at the time, the overall commitments of the Government, and, of course, the Economic Regulation Authority. I think the people of Western Australia understand that point only too well. The only people who do not appear to understand it are those sitting opposite. However, that does not surprise me. Their lack of economic credibility is there for all to see: deficits and privatisation. That is what they represented. They call that economic wisdom. We call it economic vandalism.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.