Aussie state could get extra public holiday
WA currently has the lowest number of public holidays in the nation, and usually has a day off one week earlier than its eastern state counterparts.
The state celebrates WA Day on the fist Monday in June, then celebrates the Kings Birthday on the fourth weekend in September. Most other states and territories celebrate the Kings Birthday on the second weekend in June. Premier Roger Cook said it was ridiculous to have a situation where Western Australia closes its doors when the east coast was open for business. NewsWire/ Sharon Smith Credit: News Corp Australia
Premier Roger Cook said his department was looking at realigning West Australian public holidays with the east coast so they were better synched.
'It is ridiculous you have a situation where Western Australia closes its doors or shuts the shop when the east coast is open for business,' he said.
'Today of course, you'll have frustrated members of the Western Australian business community that can't access their colleagues on the east coast.
'I'm reviewing the whole range of public holidays we have in Western Australia and where they land to make sure that we've got better alignment and that they work better for the WA community
'We are part of a national economy, and we should be working together much better to ensure better alignment around these days. ' Premier Roger Cook said his department was looking at realigning WA's public holidays with the east coast. NewsWire/Philip Gostelow Credit: News Corp Australia
CCIWA chief economist Aaron Morey said it was a good call from the premier but he did not support an additional public holiday.
'I think it's a good call from the Premier and lining up holidays definitely has public merit, how many birthdays does the king need?' he said.
'We're going to see some distraction today, the Melbourne Collingwood game on, I think people would rather be at home watching that.'
But Mr Morey said he did not support having an additional public holiday in WA, which were huge headache for small businesses doing it tough.
'Someone might see a public holiday as a benefit, but for a small business, they just see another day when they have to pay $65 an hour for someone to wash dishes,' he said.
'It's really difficult for small business to navigate and to plan around public holidays, and so certainly not supportive of that concept.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
‘For ourselves': Albo's pointed jab at US
Anthony Albanese will pay homage to former Labor prime minister John Curtin as not just the leader who founded Australia's alliance with the US, but one who stood up against allied super powers, in pointed comments amid concerns over Australia's relationship with America. Mr Curtin's leadership, which lasted between 1941 to 1945, lasted during the Pacific War and the bombing of Darwin and Broome by the Japanese. He died while in office, before peace was declared. In a speech to mark the 80th anniversary of Mr Curtin's death on Saturday, the Prime Minister will credit the Labor figure with forging Australia's long-held alliance with the United States. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will pay tribute to John Curtin on the 80th anniversary of his death on Saturday. Jane Dempster/Pool/NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia John Curtin served as prime minister from 1941 to 1945. National Library of Australia Credit: Supplied However Mr Albanese will also note Mr Curtin's decision to stand up to the US and the United Kingdom, then led by Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill his decision not to send Australian troops to then Burma, now Myanmar, in what would have been days before it fell to the Japanese. 'Hundreds if not thousands of Australians would have been killed, or taken prisoner. It would have been a disaster every bit as crushing to national morale as the fall of Singapore,' Mr Albanese is expected to tell attendees at Sydney's John Curtin Research Centre. Mr Albanese will note that while the Australian-US alliance 'ought to be remembered as a product of Curtin's leadership in defence and foreign policy, not the extent of it'. Instead, he will say that Mr Curtin had the 'confidence and determination to think and act for ourselves'. 'Because Curtin's famous statement that Australia 'looked to America' was much more than the idea of trading one strategic guarantor for another. Or swapping an alliance with the old world for one with the new,' he will say. 'It was a recognition that Australia's fate would be decided in our region. It followed the decision Curtin had made in 1941 that Australia would issue its own declaration of war with Japan. 'Speaking for ourselves, as a sovereign nation.' Anthony Albanese credited Mr Curtin for not only cementing the Australia-US alliance but also for speaking up for Australia as a 'sovereign nation'. Max Mason-Hubers/ Pool/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia His remarks come as the Albanese government is currently under pressure by the Trump administration to amp up defence spending to 3.5 per cent, comes amid concerns of fragile global stability and claims from US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth that China would imminently invade Beijing. Mr Albanese has frequently rejected US pressure to amp up defence spending, stating that investment will be calculated according to Australia's needs. Labor is also under pressure to negotiate a tariff carveout, however on Friday he said he believed the levy applied to non steel and aluminium imports would remain at 10 per cent after Donald Trump's July 9 deadline. Mr Albanese is also set to champion to 'rights and the role of middle powers and smaller nations' and speak to the importance of collective responsibility in the Indo-Pacific, despite fears of China's increasing aggression in the area. Ensuring that the 'sovereignty of every nation is respected and the dignity of every individual is upheld' is another priority. He will say his government will continue to rebuild Australia 'standing as a leader and partner in the Pacific,' deepen economic engagement in South East Asia, while 'patiently and deliberately working to stabilise our relationship with China'.
West Australian
6 hours ago
- West Australian
Herd on the Terrace: Roger Cook might be walking on a nightmare with 'Made in WA' pledge
The Bull has been pondering whether Roger Cook is walking into a nightmare thanks to his government's obsession with making stuff in WA. Cook was out of the frying pan and into the fire this week after revelations the next Tourism WA advertising campaign will be partly produced on the east coast. Procuring elaborate visuals of flying whale sharks from elsewhere would ordinarily not be especially unusual, given Western Australia has three million people and a reasonably small film industry. But the government has walked (on a dream) into a locally-built mess given 'Made in WA' was their flagship pledge in a thumping March State Election victory. When mission-critical manufacturing jobs including buses, power line towers and batteries must be assembled in the State — at great expense — artists would be fair enough to ask why there are no such requirements for creative work. Then where does it end? Stand down, BHP's fly-in, fly-out work force, Rita Saffioti wants you in Neerabup slapping together over-priced refrigerators. Petroleum engineer? Not any more! Off to Bellevue to join local procurement champions Alstom. The French company will bank $1.4 billion to make the new Metronet C-Series rail cars in India, ship them to Perth, and add a few highly uncomfortable seats in a warehouse. Hope you know how to hold a welding torch! The new trains are a true tribute to globalisation, although the local union movement would never admit that. When 'Made in WA' is your biggest promise, it becomes the metric by which every decision will be judged. We may have a shortage of workers in WA but there's never a deficit of political over-commitment. Just when you thought the so-called national carrier was cleared for reputational take-off, cyber criminals have aimed their keyboards at Qantas. Close to six million Australians were in fear that their frequent flyer points had been siphoned off to Nigeria this week when the Flying Kangaroo revealed a major data breach. Thankfully, the government-protected airline promised customers 'no frequent flyer accounts were compromised', just personal identity details. All good then! Why bother stealing all those hard-earned points anyway, given they would probably expire before arrival. The hackers are as yet unknown but The Bull expects they will soon release the membership list of Qantas' infamous Chairman's Lounge as proof of life. When director Todd Sampson — who parachutes off the board at the end of the month — hosted the 2016-2020 TV show Body Hack, we can only assume Qantas did not intend the title to be taken literally. We hope Todd can imitate Liam Neeson and personally track down Australia's Taken passport details. Recent openings in two of WA's top lobbying jobs will mean anyone who's ever been in a photo with the Artful Roger will want to put their hands up for the prized positions. Plenty of eyes are on Association of Mining and Exploration Companies boss Warren Pearce as a top option to replace Chamber of Minerals and Energy chief Rebecca Tomkinson when she jets off to a lucrative London trade gig. Also hunting for new hires will be the Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA, thanks to the swift departure of fly-in, fly-out boss Peter Cock after just four months. A tenacious orator, Pearce made a name for himself for scoring tax production credits (or taxpayer handouts, depending on your persuasion) for the State's critical minerals battlers, and is regarded as a tactful treader between business and government. The CME job requires ensuring powerful members — such as Rio Tinto and BHP — have their needs heard loud and clear at the cabinet table. And we wouldn't want these multibillion-dollar multinationals left without a voice. Alas, word is the lobbyist has actually started to turn a shade of cerulean denying his interest in the role, and is dead set on staying put . . . really.
West Australian
7 hours ago
- West Australian
The TAB: Papalia concedes ‘no value in purchasing it,' as government keeps door open on future sale
After multiple unsuccessful attempts, the state government has reiterated it does not currently plan to sell the TAB but is keeping the door open for future opportunities, as Minister Paul Papalia concedes that 'no one can see a value in purchasing it.' After plans to privatise the betting agency were first announced in 2015 by the former Barnett government, and legislation was passed under the McGowan government in 2019 to enable the sale, the government has spent years trying to find a suitable buyer. Multiple bids, including offers reportedly close to $1 billion, fell through, leading the government to scrap the sale in 2022. During budget estimates on Thursday, Minister Paul Papalia was asked by the opposition if the government would again pursue the privatisation of the TAB in this current term. 'In short, no,' Mr Papalia responded. 'That is not to say I am not out there or I would not be receptive to an approach for a sale, but there has been no interest and I do not anticipate there will be, not because we do not want to sell it or that we would categorically refuse, but probably because no-one can see a value in purchasing it.' Mr Papalia said the sale of the TAB would have secured the long-term future of the racing industry; however, the plan collapsed amid falling returns following the COVID pandemic. 'In our first term of government, we tried to sell the TAB. At that point, the TAB was of reasonable value,' he said. 'It was our ambition to sell the TAB and create an infrastructure fund to allow in perpetuity funding for the industry's requirements for upgrades and maintenance of facilities, and also return a relatively small profit to the state as a consequence of the sale. 'That fell through. COVID changed things. Prior to and post-COVID, there has been an enduring diminishing return from racing and gambling.' This financial year, the State Government is set to spend $57.1 million on racing and wagering in WA, including $38.6 million dedicated to improving and maintaining wagering systems. Shadow Racing and Gaming Minister Lachlan Hunter believes the government should be working harder to make the TAB more viable for a prospective buyer. 'We remain focused on what delivers the best outcomes for racing. What we won't support is letting the TAB wither on the vine through inaction,' Mr Hunter said. 'Instead of trying to justify inaction, the government should be working to strengthen the TAB's position—investing in digital platforms, offering a competitive product, and providing clarity about its future. 'The industry deserves leadership, not defeatism.' Despite not being able to find a suitable buyer over several years, the TAB still appears to be a cash cow for the state. 'The TAB generates hundreds of millions of dollars and is running efficiently, generating revenue for industry and taxpayers,' Mr Papalia told the West Australian.
