The Western Australian government has launched a $1 million advertising campaign in other states to protect its GST deal, as Premier Roger Cook and Treasurer Rita Saffioti head to Canberra for talks with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
The campaign, titled 'WA's GST is working for Australia', will run in eastern states newspapers, on billboards in Canberra, on radio and online. It comes amid fears that pressure from other states could lead to a revamp of the GST distribution model.
Ms Saffioti said the campaign was necessary to inform people that a good GST deal for WA benefits the nation. 'This is a real fight to make sure that WA keeps the deal that was struck in 2018,' she said. 'We need to make sure that they understand that tearing up or changing the GST deal to penalise WA would impact national economic growth and national jobs.'
The 2018 reforms, introduced by the Morrison government, ensure WA keeps at least 75 cents for every dollar of GST revenue. Without the deal, WA would receive 18 per cent of its population share for 2025-26, equating to $6 billion less, according to the government and the WA Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Ms Saffioti described the fight as worth $6.5 billion this year. She noted that even with the deal, WA contributes $2.5 billion to other states. 'They all think that somehow, they're not getting anything out of WA,' she said.
Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas said the government should decide how best to advocate for the deal, but noted the trip highlighted a lack of confidence in federal Labor counterparts. Mr Cook and Ms Saffioti also plan to meet with Federal Environment Minister Murray Watt to discuss proposed reforms to Australia's environment laws.
