WA’s Economic Strength Tempered by Structural Concerns

WA'S ECONOMIC STRENGTH TEMPERED BY STRUCTURAL CONCERNS


While domestic growth in Western Australia reached 2.9 per cent in 2024–25, above the national average of 2.1 per cent, beneath this headline strength, signs of strain are emerging.

Responding to the release of ABS data released today, Shadow Treasurer Sandra Brewer noted private non-dwelling construction has declined 2.5 per cent since last financial year and annual business investment is down 0.8 per cent.

Ms Brewer took aim at the Cook Labor government’s costly overruns in transport projects and the mismanagement of health infrastructure spending, evident in the record-high public capital spending figures.

“Overspending in transport and mismanagement of health infrastructure spending is pushing public works spending ever higher, growing by 9.5 per cent this year, coming off a high of 16.6 per cent the year before,” she said.

“The consequence is it is pushing up costs – and particularly in the case of construction – crowding out the private sector.”

The public sector’s share of the economy has ballooned out to 26.3 per cent for 2024-25, the largest size on record in WA, eclipsing the former high of 26.1 per cent in 1986-87.

Meanwhile, dwellings gross fixed capital formation in chain volume measures remains lower than when WA Labor came to power in 2016-17.

This is reflective of the fact that there are nearly 8,000 fewer homes on average being built under each year of this Labor government, than the Barnett Liberal-National government of 2008 to 2017.

“The reality is that elevated and inefficient spending on public works means less workers building homes,” she said.