Roger Cook's letter to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese: Look after WA's interests
Dear Anthony,
Congratulations on leading the Australian Labor Party (ALP) to an emphatic reelection. Over the past three years you and your team have had to contend with significant global challenges. Your record of delivery in the face of these challenges, and your positive plan for the future, were recognised and strongly endorsed by Australian voters at the election on May 3rd.
Our respective governments have worked collaboratively for the benefit of Australia and we have achieved much together. I highly value our close working relationship, and I look forward to continuing to work with you to address the challenges and grasp the many opportunities ahead.
The priority areas on which I invite early collaboration between us are:
Goods and Services Tax
I welcome your commitment to maintain the Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms that ensure Western Australia receives a fair share of the GST.
As you know, WA is the engine room of the national economy and the GST deal enables the WA Government to continue to invest in the infrastructure we need to drive economic activity, boost productivity and continue to contribute in our outsized way.
While some commentators on the east coast continue to agitate for a reduction in WA's fair share of the GST, Western Australians know that the Albanese Government has our back and we ask that this deal is locked in permanently.
Health
As a result of having the strongest economy in the nation, WA also has the fastest growing population in the nation, and this creates pressure in areas like health and housing.
To support our vision of making WA the healthiest state in the nation, I applaud the ALP s commitment to putting Health front and centre of the election campaign.
Your commitment to co-fund a major update of the Midland Health Campus will contribute greatly to hospital and Emergency Department capacity in Perth and I look forward to delivering this in partnership with you. Further, your commitment to increasing bulk-billed doctor visits, investment in Medicare Urgent Care Clinics and Medicare Mental Health Centres, will go a long way to ensuring Western Australians have better access to the health services they need, when they need them, and alleviate current pressures in public hospitals.
WA remains committed to resolving the 5-year National Health Reform Agreement, in line with the parameters National Cabinet agreed upon in December 2023, as soon as possible and I acknowledge the commitment of Ministers and officials to date. Realising the commitment to achieve a 45% National Commonwealth Contribution Rate by 2035, and the capacity to appropriately fund innovative health care, like virtual care, will allow WA to more sustainably deliver the health care West Australians expect and deserve.
Similarly, the parameters for co-funded Foundational Supports, tied to NHRA negotiations, are yet to be agreed, despite the Commonwealth progressing legislative and operational changes to the NDIS, with children in particular no longer being eligible for the scheme without WA having implemented a Foundational Supports service model or progressing to a full scheme agreement.
Resolving the negotiations in health and disability, and ensuring jurisdictions are better off overall as a result, remain a priority for WA. Furthermore, I look forward to the finalisation of negotiations for our DisabilityCare Australia fund payment and transitioning to the full scheme agreement for the NDIS.
Housing
As I conveyed during the campaign, we welcome your commitment to my government's vision of ensuring every Western Australian has a home.
In WA, we are pulling every lever we have to address this issue with a record $5.1 billion investment in housing and homelessness measures since 2021. We welcome the ALP s increased support for first homebuyers. It will be important for the Commonwealth to work with states and territories on the design of these initiatives to ensure we are targeting the right cohorts, they complement existing State-based programs and can be delivered effectively in partnership with the WA housing and development industry.
Housing in regional WA is a particular priority for my government, I would encourage the Commonwealth Government to increase direct grants to boost regional housing where we have limited Community Housing providers. While this is important right around the State, I draw your attention to the importance of ensuring our regional centres of Karratha and Port Hedland have the housing they need to support the workforce requirements for the immense economic development opportunities currently in front of them, which include major renewables, gas and minerals processing projects, including green iron.
Environmental Approvals and Legislative Reform
WA supports reforms that will deliver improved environmental outcomes that are better for business. Streamlining environmental approvals will be a key enabler in supporting your Building a Future Made in Australia agenda and to enable the green energy projects required to position Australia as a renewable energy powerhouse.
I welcome your commitment during the campaign to go back to the drawing board on environmental reforms, ensuring that there is extensive consultation with the WA Government and industry stakeholders on any new model for environmental law reform.
Gas is critical to meeting the energy needs of WA and supporting renewables in our clean energy transition, which includes exiting coal ahead of any other Australian state. Gas is also crucial to helping our trading partners to decarbonise, both directly and in helping WA process minerals like lithium, which are critical to the manufacturing of renewables and battery storage.
As you are aware, the Federal Government has previously delayed a decision on environmental approval for the North West Shelf Project Extension. It is important that a decision on this project is made promptly and without any further delay.
Strong and Diversified Economy
I look forward to working with you to ensure WA continues to be the economic engine room of the nation. Your Building a Future Made in Australia agenda is strongly aligned with our Made in WA priorities - together our governments can collaborate to help diversify our economy and make more things here.
Underpinning our future economic growth is our joint commitment to deliver clean, reliable and affordable energy. Decarbonising Western Australian industry will be key to the nation's ongoing economic prosperity. I look forward to continued Commonwealth cooperation and investment in the infrastructure needed to support this transition, including supporting carbon capture and storage.
WA is well-positioned to support the Australian Government to deliver on its AUKUS responsibilities in line with its commitments under the Defence Cooperation Agreement. Negotiations are underway between WA and Commonwealth Government senior officials, however, these are progressing more slowly than we would like.
As a priority, we need a shared understanding of timing and sequencing of key decision points. This is vital to minimise disruption to adjacent renewables, critical minerals processing and decommissioning industries across the Western Trade Coast, the economy and to achieve our shared objectives of delivering the defence precinct and boosting the defence industry and capability.
Skills and Jobs
Having a skilled workforce will underpin everything we do. I strongly welcome your government's continued commitment to Fee-Free TAFE. While our governments are doing everything we can to ensure Australians have the opportunity to gain the skills they need, it is clear that WA will continue to face ongoing pressures on our skilled workforce.
WA has the lowest unemployment rate and highest labour force participation rate of every state in the nation. Skilled migration will continue to play an important role in ensuring WA has the workforce it needs. I encourage your government to consult with the WA Government and industry on further opportunities to expand skilled migration into WA.
International education is an important part of the national economy. International students also play an important role in ensuring our tertiary education system is world class and delivering the research that is essential to our nation s future prosperity.
I am concerned about the negative impacts of the Commonwealth Government's migration reforms on WA's international education sector and economy. I understand that a number of international education providers in the State, particularly VET and English language providers, will have to scale back operations or cease business as a result.
I urge the Commonwealth Government to consider WA s particular circumstances when developing the 2026 New Overseas Student Commencement as opposed to relying solely on historical data. Despite significant investment to support the international education sector recover from the impacts of COVID-19, WA's international student enrolment share remains notably lower than its general population share, unlike some other jurisdictions.
Funding for Remote Communities
The former Liberal-National Commonwealth Government vacated its historic and moral obligations to remote Aboriginal communities in 2018. While your government has made important commitments to support remote communities in the Northern Territory, issues impacting remote communities in WA have not been addressed.
WA has already made significant progress on improving the standard of power and water services, however, on housing and municipal services there is more work to be done. Improving outcomes for Aboriginal communities requires a collective effort from all levels of government and is critical if we are to achieve our targets in Closing the Gap. I seek your support for the Commonwealth Government to take an active role in partnering with the WA Government to address challenges in these communities.
Early Childhood Education and Care
I commend your government for establishing a universal early education system that includes expanding services to areas of need and the establishment of the 3 Day Guarantee to replace the Activity Test.
My government has committed $33.9 million to commence a nation-leading rollout of free fulltime kindergarten for children in their year before full time school and the establishment of the Office of Early Childhood. We have also committed $15 million to significantly increase the availability of out-of-school-hours care at WA public schools.
In WA, some of the benefits of the additional hours of subsidised early childhood education provided by the Commonwealth will not be realised as kindergarten is offered in public school settings.
The National Preschool Reform Agreement will provide an opportunity for the Commonwealth to recognise WA s commitment to school-based pre-school and provide a fair funding allocation.
Infrastructure
I would like to acknowledge the ongoing and productive collaboration between our governments to deliver on critical infrastructure priorities, including the continued rollout of our flagship METRONET program of public transport investments and the delivery of major road upgrades across Perth and regional WA. Your commitments to continue supporting the next stage of key infrastructure projects in WA, such as Westport, the return of the Western Australian Freight Rail network to government hands, the expansion of the ferry network and key road upgrades, will help to provide certainty to industry and the community about the future of our transport sector.
My government remains focused on delivering our major infrastructure projects and will continue to advocate strongly for our population share of national infrastructure funding.
Sport and Recreation
The Western Australian government is actively involved in creating and enhancing sporting infrastructure across the State. My government has recently committed over $330 million across sporting and recreation projects, notwithstanding the $217 million to further redevelop Perth's Burswood Peninsula into a world class sport and entertainment precinct. Federal partnerships remain critical for many of these projects. I would welcome further discussion on how our governments can work together, particularly on the Binar Aboriginal Sporting Hub, Malaga Sports Precinct as well as the Dorrien Gardens redevelopment.
Delivering Election Commitments
I welcome the many election commitments you and team have made that will benefit WA. I also acknowledge the joint commitments the WA Government made with the ALP which we will now work with you to deliver.
• $355 million to upgrade St John of God Midland Public Hospital - the Commonwealth will contribute $200 million to this project.
• $700 million to upgrade the Kwinana Freeway - the Commonwealth will contribute $350 million to this project.
• $450 million to upgrade the Reid Highway-Erindale Road intersection - the Commonwealth will contribute $225 million to this project.
• $60 million to expand the Swan River Ferry network.
• $2.5 million to support the Australian Rail Track Corporation to work with the Western Australian Government to support bring W s freight rail network back into public hands.
There are a number of other priorities and election commitments of interest to the WA Government. My respective Cabinet Ministers will engage with their Commonwealth counterparts to discuss further.
I look forward to continuing to work with you and your Ministers. There is also always an open invitation for your Cabinet to meet again in WA in 2025.
Yours sincerely,
Roger Cook
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