❓ Dr. Honey questions WA's economic growth lagging behind other states. The Premier refutes this, citing strong state final demand and job creation, attributing lower GSP to reduced exports and promoting WA as the strongest economy.
AnsweredQoN 871Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
STATE ECONOMY — MANAGEMENT
871. Dr D.J. HONEY to the Premier:
I refer to an article in The West
Australian last week reporting Australian Bureau of Statistics figures that Western Australia had posted the weakest
economic growth for any state in Australia through the 2024 financial year .
WA's growth was reported at only 0.05 per cent, down from 3.7 per cent
last year, and only one-third the reported average rate across Australia, at
1.5 per cent.
(1) Why is economic growth in Western
Australia lagging so far behind the other states in Australia?
(2) What action
is the government taking to ensure that economic growth in Western Australia
does not fall even further?
871. Dr D.J. HONEY to the Premier:
I refer to an article in The West
Australian last week reporting Australian Bureau of Statistics figures that Western Australia had posted the weakest
economic growth for any state in Australia through the 2024 financial year .
WA's growth was reported at only 0.05 per cent, down from 3.7 per cent
last year, and only one-third the reported average rate across Australia, at
1.5 per cent.
(1) Why is economic growth in Western
Australia lagging so far behind the other states in Australia?
(2) What action
is the government taking to ensure that economic growth in Western Australia
does not fall even further?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for the question. As he well
knows, Western Australia's economy is the fastest growing in the country. We are the strongest economy and
we have the fastest growing population. We have sustained at or below
four per cent unemployment for the last three years, which is a record for this
state. The member for Cottesloe is referring to gross state product, which
takes into account exports from the state. Obviously, over the course of the
last 12 months we have had lower exports of grain and other crops and lower
exports of iron ore because of the moderating iron ore price. But we have to
strip out the impacts of imports and exports to find out what the base economic
activity is. That is called state final demand, and it is a truer indication of the strength of the economy because it
does not take into account the distorting effects of imports and exports. It shows that state final demand has
increased, or improved, by 5.8 per cent. That is the true indication of
the strength of our economy. If imports and exports are taken out, state final demand is up by 5.8 per cent. The pleasing nature
of that 5.8 per cent is that it is double the national average . That is a vindication of the strength of the Western
Australian economy. This is a point that CommSec made recently when it
concluded what we all know; that is, Western Australia has the strongest
economy in the country. Dwelling investment is up, business investment is up,
government investment is up and employment is up. A total of 320 000 jobs have
been created since we were elected to government.
I thank the member for the question
because it allows us the opportunity to continue to talk about what a great place Western Australia is to live. We
have the combination of both the strongest economy and the best standard of living in the country. One of our
key constraints is skilled migration, particularly the growth of the
building and construction workforce. That is the reason we have introduced our
$10 000 incentive, Build a Life in WA. I was very proud on the weekend to
announce that not only will we have an incentive for tradies on the east coast,
but we will extend that incentive to tradies in New Zealand. This will allow
tradies in New Zealand who secure a job in Western Australia to come here for
two $5 000 incentive payments so they can
build a life in WA. As I always say, the west coast is the best coast! If you
are coming from New Zealand, do not bother going as far as Sydney,
definitely do not go to Melbourne, come to Western Australia because we know
this is where the strength is!
knows, Western Australia's economy is the fastest growing in the country. We are the strongest economy and
we have the fastest growing population. We have sustained at or below
four per cent unemployment for the last three years, which is a record for this
state. The member for Cottesloe is referring to gross state product, which
takes into account exports from the state. Obviously, over the course of the
last 12 months we have had lower exports of grain and other crops and lower
exports of iron ore because of the moderating iron ore price. But we have to
strip out the impacts of imports and exports to find out what the base economic
activity is. That is called state final demand, and it is a truer indication of the strength of the economy because it
does not take into account the distorting effects of imports and exports. It shows that state final demand has
increased, or improved, by 5.8 per cent. That is the true indication of
the strength of our economy. If imports and exports are taken out, state final demand is up by 5.8 per cent. The pleasing nature
of that 5.8 per cent is that it is double the national average . That is a vindication of the strength of the Western
Australian economy. This is a point that CommSec made recently when it
concluded what we all know; that is, Western Australia has the strongest
economy in the country. Dwelling investment is up, business investment is up,
government investment is up and employment is up. A total of 320 000 jobs have
been created since we were elected to government.
I thank the member for the question
because it allows us the opportunity to continue to talk about what a great place Western Australia is to live. We
have the combination of both the strongest economy and the best standard of living in the country. One of our
key constraints is skilled migration, particularly the growth of the
building and construction workforce. That is the reason we have introduced our
$10 000 incentive, Build a Life in WA. I was very proud on the weekend to
announce that not only will we have an incentive for tradies on the east coast,
but we will extend that incentive to tradies in New Zealand. This will allow
tradies in New Zealand who secure a job in Western Australia to come here for
two $5 000 incentive payments so they can
build a life in WA. As I always say, the west coast is the best coast! If you
are coming from New Zealand, do not bother going as far as Sydney,
definitely do not go to Melbourne, come to Western Australia because we know
this is where the strength is!
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.