Is Mr Popularity Really Just a One-Trick Pony?

AUTHOR: Paul Murray SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 205,782 PAGE: 38 PRINTED SIZE: 2102.00cm² REGION: WA MARKET: Australia ASR: AUD 59,261 WORDS: 1536 ITEM ID: 1405107807

27 FEB, 2021 Is Mr Popularity really just a one-trick pony?

The West Australian (Saturday edition), Perth Page 1 of 5 PAUL MURRAY Is Mr Popularity really just a one-trick pony?

McGowan’s riding high on the pandemic but his track record doesn’t bode well for when life goes back to normal

anything people from the free to get on with the same est Australians post-war generations had ever sort of things it did in the first lived through three experienced. three years. years of a As pre-poll voting kicks off So let’s go back to 2019 and Wpre-COVID era for the March 13 election, it see what the McGowan McGowan Labor appears Mark McGowan will be Government looked like after Government which was rewarded handsomely for that two years in power. It seems nothing out of the box. last bit of his four-year term. many have forgotten. That was followed by 12 But the worst of the Back to the time of crayfish months when everything was pandemic might be over by the socialism when Labor tried to overshadowed by the end of this year. And that take over the WA rock lobster international battle against the would leave more than three industry and the pertinent pandemic — a time unlike years of a Labor government question in many business

Licensed by Copyright Agency. You may only copy or communicate this work with a licence. AUTHOR: Paul Murray SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 205,782 PAGE: 38 PRINTED SIZE: 2102.00cm² REGION: WA MARKET: Australia ASR: AUD 59,261 WORDS: 1536 ITEM ID: 1405107807

27 FEB, 2021 Is Mr Popularity really just a one-trick pony?

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sectors was this: who’s next? as the centrepiece to last current “rock star” buzz and What sort of political hubris weekend’s Labor campaign the pandemic clearly came as a caused that brain fade? Or was launch. How long will that godsend to the McGowan it a sign of true ideological promise last? Government — which is not to intentions that got derailed just Skip back a bit further to the say it hasn’t handled it well. It in time? Darling Range by-election of has. But should voters see Labor went into the 2017 June, 2018 at which Labor McGowan as more than a election with a core promise to suffered a massive 9.5 per cent one-trick pony? “create” 50,000 jobs in its first And what’s up for grabs in term. But in February 2019 the next four years of Labor? swing, losing the seat to the McGowan walked away from That answer is a lot if they Liberals after the Barry Urban, that number, replacing it with a get control of both Houses of pictured below, scandal. grandiloquent plan for 150,000 Parliament. Cockburn Sound, Things looked even more jobs over the ensuing five years for example. weird at that stage, with to 2023-24. Why? Labor has wilfully blocked then-Liberal leader Mike By October, as the any future possibility of a Nahan claiming that Government inched towards its better freight route to poll was a referendum third anniversary, a Media Fremantle — which would also on McGowan’s Reach opinion poll was decongest traffic in the leadership. published which revealed that southern suburbs — and four “Labor’s poor promise was struggling as years will be long enough to performance will be unemployment grew. enshrine its alternative of a cause to think about The poll showed the Liberals some of Mark marginally ahead and that Kwinana outer harbour and the McGowan’s Labor had a problem with destruction of Cockburn policies and how women voters, sparking then Sound. they are Opposition leader Liza Harvey While the Opposition might affecting people to go on the offensive about not be laying too many hits on in areas such as WA’s sluggish economy. the Government, some unions Darling Seems weird now, hey? are having a crack in this Range,” The “Only 20 per cent of women campaign. West believed the State Government Right from the start, the Australian’s had created more jobs, as maritime union saw the opposed to 30 per cent of men,” government’s Westport process it was reported. political reporter Dylan Caporn for what it was — getting to a “Mrs Harvey (said) . . . — who now works for Labor — pre-ordained result of women were worried about job wrote after the loss. “While replacing a perfectly adequate security, mortgage stress, and there were extraordinary port at Fremantle capable of the state of the economy and circumstances in this campaign another 20 years’ capacity with Labor had failed on its promise . . . there was also an an expensive and unnecessary to create more jobs.” Opposition talking about the one at Kwinana. Blind Freddie could see why Government’s $700 increases The outer harbour will have to fees and charges over the to jump enormous past year, and cuts to environmental hurdles to get McGowan had extended the services.” approved, but Labor will be 150,000 jobs timeframe out Those early broken helped by the acquiescence of beyond his first term: Labor promises are another was worried it would become a thing that most 2021 election millstone on his people seem the WA green movement. It has results up to that stage. to have preferred to trade off some Unemployment was growing forgotten. It’s degraded bush in Coolbellup faster than he could say he was amazing and a tiny corner of Bibra Lake creating jobs. But when the what a $600 wetlands for a sensitive coastal pandemic struck, all bets were power bill ecology and the passive off and McGowan axed that bribe can recreation playground that promise anyway. do. So the generations of West Now he wants to do it all over early years Australians have enjoyed. again, setting another new The only stranger labour target of 125,000 jobs by 2025-26 in government lacked the

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yg movement campaign is the know what is,” Cook said in So were you manipulated at a Australian Services Union’s October 2014, when Barnett time of high anxiety? Almost attempt to frighten voters that government ramping hit 1500 certainly. the Liberals — who no one hours in a month. Two months It’s hardly surprising that expects to win — will privatise people are reacting like government-owned energy Pavlov’s dog to McGowan’s assets like Western Power. ago,a it registered 4111 hours pandemic rhetoric. That That claim ignores the fact aand McGowan blamed psychology has been known for that the only State Government CCOVID-19, even though there more than 100 years and fear is to privatise power assets in wwere no affected patients in a very motivating emotion. recent memory is the current hospitalh or the community. The messages that voters one. Late in 2017, Labor quietly But in February, 2018, have been fed are the ones the sold Synergy’s Albany and pre-COVID,p ambulance Government knows they want rampingr was already 2221 to hear and have been hours.h And it got steadily worse conditioned to accept. Grasmere wind farms, the throughtth 2019. Crisis anyone? Labor is so poll-driven that it Greenough River solar project “Mark McGowan and Roger is even testing whether its and its Warradarge renewables CookC were both incensed in attack ads on Liberal leader project at Eneabba to a 20132 and 2015 when there was Zak Kirkup are creating any foreign-dominated consortium. muchm less ramping going on . . . sympathy for him. They’re One of the reasons for that anda yet under their watch it has not. privatisation was Ben Wyatt. increasedi dramatically,” In a social era when emotions He’s not your standard Labor AustralianA Medical Association and feelings override logic, ideologue, which is why he’s (WA)( emergency medicine rewarding McGowan has going to a plum job in the representativer David Mountain become central to the election. private sector after the election. saids in March 2019. But what happens when the But record iron ore prices “They have done nothing to pandemic passes and governing and the subsequent royalties changec that. They don't seem to returns to normal? flood make Wyatt’s books look taket it seriously.” better than he deserves. He got It is a supreme irony that an operating surplus, but debt McGowanM is getting massive blew out by $8.3 billion in the supports over one health issue last Budget. thatt might be fixed by year’s That Budget shows net debt end,e but in four years the as a share of gross State State’s hospital system went product steadily growing from backwards,b attracting no 11.9 per cent this year to 14.1 penalty. Maybe that’s because per cent in 2023-24. you can’t fix hospitals by opinion polling. But you can close borders. Despite that, Wyatt’s loss will It was revealed earlier this be a blow to the McGowan month that McGowan’s Government’s economic Department of Premier and credentials. He was its financial Cabinet spent at least $100,000 backbone and internal during the height of the skirmishing continues over pandemic polling the public’s who can adequately handle response to new government WA’s recovery as treasurer. restrictions. Health Minister Roger Cook The extent to which the has been mentioned in community sentiment polling dispatches, but he should not be determined the government’s in line for a promotion until he COVID strategies and fixes the mess in his own messaging is unclear. But why portfolio. do it? The logical conclusion is In Opposition, Cook that such research was done to established ambulance ramping gauge what the public would as the metric by which to tolerate and what messages measure the hospital system. were working. “If that’s not a crisis, I don’t

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y 27, 2021 3 Let’s go back to 2019 and see what the McGowan Government looked like after two years in power. It seems many have forgotten.

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