Rick Newnham

Gold miners have warned of devastating consequences from a higher royalty rate, including potential mine closures, while business groups have also taken aim at proposed payroll tax hikes for larger employers, after both were targeted in a $1 billion revenue grab by the state government in today’s budget.

The state government has revised its budget deficit for the current financial year to a record $2.6 billion but insists the budget outlook has improved while also confirming it has added Landgate to its list of potential asset sales.

The state government’s parlous budget position received a small boost today, with Western Australia in line to receive $225 million more in GST revenue next financial year than had previously been estimated.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten today pledged $241 million to extend the Armadale suburban rail line to Byford, bringing federal Labor’s infrastructure commitments in the state to $1.2 billion.

Western Australia’s unemployment rate has hit its highest level in more than 16 years, despite the state’s economy adding jobs in March, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The planned overhaul of the GST distribution system may not be perfect, but it's a pragmatic and creative response all states and territories should be able to accept, Western Australian Treasurer Ben Wyatt said today.

Grants from the federal government and delayed dividend payments from state-owned enterprises have helped the state government report an operating deficit 73 per cent below forecast in the 2018 financial year, while the non-trade economy has grown after a sustained period of shrinking.

Job vacancies in Western Australia have reached their highest level in more than five years, while the state's mining industry has hit a record level of employment.

The prospects of a GST overhaul have been given a boost today, after the federal government said the proposed legislation would include safeguards to ensure every jurisdiction will be in a better financial position over a set period.

Full-time employment in Western Australia has hit a three-year high, as the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed a decline in the state’s jobless rate to 6 per cent in September.

The state government has confirmed it will use an estimated $1.7 billion GST windfall to pay down its debts, after the legislation cleared federal parliament today.

Western Australia’s jobless rate has fallen to 5.7 per cent in October, while the national figure remains at a six-year low.

Western Australia has regained the mantle of the highest unemployment in the country, after a 0.8 per cent uptick in the jobless rate in November.

The unemployment rate in Western Australia fell by 1 per cent in February, as 11,000 people stopped looking for work.

Western Australia’s unemployment rate has increased by 0.1 per cent taking it to 6 per cent in March, making it 1 per cent higher than the national average of 5 per cent.

Business peak groups have slammed newly minted opposition leader Liza Harvey’s policy shifts on public sector wages, privatising Western Power, and retail trading hours.