WA Labor and Liberals trade barbs as election campaigns launch half-an-hour apart

Treasurer Rita Saffioti was left to stick the boot in to the Liberals’ candidate preselections.

“I’ve been around politics for a while. The Liberals have always set a very low bar for its candidates but in 2025 the bar is on the floor, and somehow they’ve managed to dive underneath it,” she said.

Labor’s pitch

Cook entered the room alongside his wife Carly to INXS’ Don’t Change where he was greeted by some familiar faces former premiers Mark McGowan and Peter Dowding and former Labor minister Jim McGinty.

He opened his speech by talking up the state of the WA economy and the inroads the government has made in diversifying the state’s mining-reliant economy.

“During our time in office, the value added to our economy by industries other than mining has grown by $80 billion a year, to put that into perspective that’s like adding two Tasmanias to our economy every year,” he said.

Cook then pitched the party’s Made in WA plan, which has been stitched together from an array of recent promises like the pledge to manufacture transmission towers in Forrestfield and Bunbury.

“Now, I know we’re an export state, but we should never export jobs and projects that we can do ourselves.”

He also promised $50 million to kickstart battery manufacturing in the state to create the batteries necessary for its $5000 rebate and $10,000 loan home battery incentive promise.

Liberals’ pitch

Mettam was introduced by her daughter Bianca and seven-month-old granddaughter Remmy.

She walked out to Panic! At the Disco’s High Hopes and immediately launched into a budgetary history lesson.

“Through no doing of their own, Labor in two terms of government has received $114 billion in GST grants and royalties compared with $57 billion the Barnett government received in its last two terms,” she said.

“The Labor campaign bangs on about their experience but the experience for West Australians is that they are now worse off after eight years of Labor mismanagement and I don’t think they want that experience to continue.”

Mettam, who is also shadow health minister, lashed the government’s performance in health before turning to the $13.5 billion Metronet.

“You could get five new Fiona Stanley-style public hospitals for that $10 billion – but only if we build them of course. With Rita in charge, they’d cost $50 billion,” she said.

The newest commitment Mettam made was to reverse the changes to the Upper House voting that occurred shortly after Labor gained control of both houses in 2021.

“Twenty per cent of the state’s population have lost representation because of Labor’s grab for power,” she said.

“We will fix that and not add to the city-country divide at a time when regional Western Australia needs support.”