❓ The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. McGowan, asks the Premier, Mr. Barnett, to confirm if he stated "WA is broke" at a business breakfast. Mr. Barnett confirms he made the comment flippantly and criticises the opposition's focus on it.
AnsweredQoN 50Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
STATE ECONOMY — PREMIER'S COMMENTS
50. Mr M. McGOWAN to the Premier:
I refer to reports that at a business
breakfast on Friday morning the Premier stated, ''WA is broke.''
Can the Premier confirm that he stated to a business audience on Friday morning
that the state is ''broke''?
50. Mr M. McGOWAN to the Premier:
I refer to reports that at a business
breakfast on Friday morning the Premier stated, ''WA is broke.''
Can the Premier confirm that he stated to a business audience on Friday morning
that the state is ''broke''?
AnswerView source ↗
There were 470 people at that
breakfast; I did not notice the Leader of the Opposition there.
Dr
A.D. Buti : You should have looked.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : Was the Leader of the Opposition there?
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Through the Chair, please.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : There were 470 people there. I was very impressed that this
was a younger group of business people.
Mr
M. McGowan : That's not the question.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : I am answering it, mate. It was a younger group of business
people, with many faces I did not recognise, and I thought it was terrific that
they came out. There were lots of good questions and there was lots of good
commentary. Significantly, there were a large number of women amongst that
business group. And yes, I gave a very frank assessment of the Western Australian
economy. I outlined some of the differences between the government and the
opposition on key issues, particularly relating to, if you like, the broadening
of our economy into the future. And yes, I think as I responded to a question
or finished my speech, someone asked about some expenditure—I cannot
remember the exact question—and I said flippantly, ''Don't
worry; we're broke.'' If the Leader of the Opposition thinks
that is a profound statement and if his number one question for the day is
about that—if that is the issue, a flippant comment to 470 people at
the end of a breakfast, and the Leader of the Opposition thinks that is a serious
point —
Mrs
M.H. Roberts : It's a joke, is it?
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : For goodness sake, next time I speak at a breakfast I will
give you a ticket so you can come along and listen; you might learn something.
If we cannot be a little bit flippant, as I was —
Several members interjected.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : The research of the opposition is hearsay about what I said
to 470 people in confidence while being flippant and a bit lighthearted, which
I am inclined to be—that is its number one area of research. Its second
is to jump up in the morning, unwrap The
West Australian and see what the story of the day is, and that is how it
drives its policy. For goodness sake, if the opposition is going to be serious,
ask a serious question.
breakfast; I did not notice the Leader of the Opposition there.
Dr
A.D. Buti : You should have looked.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : Was the Leader of the Opposition there?
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Through the Chair, please.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : There were 470 people there. I was very impressed that this
was a younger group of business people.
Mr
M. McGowan : That's not the question.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : I am answering it, mate. It was a younger group of business
people, with many faces I did not recognise, and I thought it was terrific that
they came out. There were lots of good questions and there was lots of good
commentary. Significantly, there were a large number of women amongst that
business group. And yes, I gave a very frank assessment of the Western Australian
economy. I outlined some of the differences between the government and the
opposition on key issues, particularly relating to, if you like, the broadening
of our economy into the future. And yes, I think as I responded to a question
or finished my speech, someone asked about some expenditure—I cannot
remember the exact question—and I said flippantly, ''Don't
worry; we're broke.'' If the Leader of the Opposition thinks
that is a profound statement and if his number one question for the day is
about that—if that is the issue, a flippant comment to 470 people at
the end of a breakfast, and the Leader of the Opposition thinks that is a serious
point —
Mrs
M.H. Roberts : It's a joke, is it?
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : For goodness sake, next time I speak at a breakfast I will
give you a ticket so you can come along and listen; you might learn something.
If we cannot be a little bit flippant, as I was —
Several members interjected.
Mr
C.J. BARNETT : The research of the opposition is hearsay about what I said
to 470 people in confidence while being flippant and a bit lighthearted, which
I am inclined to be—that is its number one area of research. Its second
is to jump up in the morning, unwrap The
West Australian and see what the story of the day is, and that is how it
drives its policy. For goodness sake, if the opposition is going to be serious,
ask a serious question.
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.