SENATOR MATT O’SULLIVAN
SHADOW ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR FISHERIES AND FORESTRY
SHADOW ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE
SENATOR FOR WESTERN AUSTRALIA
MEDIA RELEASE
Figures revealed through Senator Matt O’Sullivan’s Budget Estimates questions confirm the WA Labor government has not only delayed critical infrastructure projects but is overseeing a total collapse in federal infrastructure investment in our state.
Treasury’s responses show Commonwealth infrastructure payments to Western Australia will plummet from $4.299 billion in 2024-25 to just A$688 million by 2028-29, an extraordinary reduction of around 84%.
Senator O’Sullivan said every Western Australian should be alarmed.
“Labor’s track record on delivering projects on time or on budget is bad enough, but this takes their incompetence to a whole new level.”
“There is no plan, no vision and no allocated funding for Western Australia's future. Labor’s failure to think beyond Metronet to other projects, some which have been stuck in the planning phase for several years, is now reflected in the Commonwealth’s budget forecasts.”
“The Prime Minister talks up his commitment to WA at every opportunity, but the budget proves this is all talk and no action.”
Although Treasury confirmed in Estimates that the reduction is not linked to WA’s GST arrangements, the only other plausible explanation for the sharp decline in infrastructure funding is that the WA Labor government has failed to present a compelling pipeline of projects beyond Metronet.
“Federal Labor’s hands-off approach, combined with WA Labor’s Metronet fixation, means they’ve lost sight of the broader infrastructure needs of a growing state. That complacency is costing Western Australian’s billions in federal investment.”
Meanwhile, WA’s road network is under unprecedented pressure. Congestion on the Mitchell and Kwinana freeways is now a daily certainty, with traffic crawling for hours in both directions. Key east-west corridors such as Great Eastern Highway, Leach Highway and Tonkin Highway are routinely gridlocked, and major intersections like Reid Highway and Erindale Road, Tonkin Highway and Welshpool Road East, Leach Highway and Manning Road have become choke points that frustrate motorists and cripple productivity.
With the first AUKUS rotation due in early 2027, planning failures are now threatening critical defence infrastructure in WA. Officials have admitted they are still arguing over responsibility for assessing the Garden Island Highway extension and key road upgrades near the Henderson Defence Precinct, despite feasibility funding being announced more than a year ago. With less than twelve months to go and a shrinking infrastructure pipeline, even basic planning is now in doubt, let alone delivery.
“Western Australians deserve better. Without a strong infrastructure pipeline our state risks falling behind while the rest of the country moves forward.”
“It’s time for the Labor governments to do the job Western Australian's elected them to do: plan, fund and deliver the infrastructure our state urgently needs.”
“Federal Labor members in Western Australia, especially cabinet ministers Anne Aly and Madeline King, must stand up for WA and demand action, rather than quietly accepting funding cuts that shortchange our state. When billions in future funding vanish, it is clear the Albanese government is taking WA for granted and giving back a fraction of what our state contributes.”
“The Coalition will continue to fight for WA and hold this government to account every step of the way.”