Mr. Nalder questions the Premier on the accuracy of the midyear review regarding the state's economic contraction. The Premier defends his government's economic performance, citing job creation, infrastructure projects, and improved financial management.

AnsweredQoN 22Legislative Assembly
Asked
12 February 2020
Portfolio
Premier

QuestionView source ↗

STATE ECONOMY
22. Mr D.C. NALDER to the Premier:
I have a supplementary question. Is
the Premier saying that the midyear review is wrong where it states that
the domestic economy contracted last year by one per cent?

AnswerView source ↗

I will explain it to the member
again. The economy grew over the course of this government —
Mr D.C. Nalder : interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Bateman!
Mr M. McGOWAN : The member
should read what his good friend Colin Barnett has said about state final
demand. I remember he was a good friend of the member. All he did was promote
the member and then the member challenged him.
Mr D.C. Nalder interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Bateman! I call you to order for the second time.
Mr M. McGOWAN : He said that
the figures the member is quoting were meaningless. The reality is that this
government has got the state out of a recession. This government has put 50 000-plus
Western Australians into employment. This
government has secured more support for Western Australia from the commonwealth
government than any other government in memory.
Mr V.A. Catania interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for North
West Central! I call you to order for the first time.
Mr M. McGOWAN : This
government has a massive capital works program in rail, road and the like
around Western Australia for which we have huge support from the commonwealth
government to implement, therefore lessening the impact on the taxpayers of Western
Australia. This government is diversifying the state's economy. This
government is managing the state's finances appropriately and has got
us back to surplus, and our credit rating upgraded by both Moody's and
Standard and Poor's. These are all things that members opposite were
completely incapable of doing. Now they sit there like armchair critics,
staring at their phones. We should ban their phones, let alone the phones of
the kids at school, so that they actually focus and concentrate!
Several members interjected.
Mr M. McGOWAN : They are no
doubt watching the live stream of me at the moment.
I will conclude. The armchair
critics over there, who, when they had the chance in government to fix things,
made a complete mess of it, have no right to criticise people who are actually
doing things well.

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