Press conference, Perth, North Metropolitan TAFE, Clarkson

PREMIER OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA ROGER COOK: Thanks very much for coming, everyone, here to the Clarkson North Metropolitan TAFE campus. I’m here with Federal Skills and Training Minister Andrew Giles, the WA Training and Workforce Development Minister Simone McGurk. And joining us is Mark Folkard, the member for Burns Beach and Tracey Roberts, the member for Pearce. We have a really important announcement today. And as you know, my government is leaving no brick or stone unturned when it comes to making sure that we train our young people giving them the opportunities for the jobs of the future. We continue to work with industry and training providers on the best ways that we can get more boots on the ground.

Today, I’m very proud to announce that we are announcing 2,140 Fee-Free – additional Fee-Free TAFE places will be available in the housing and construction courses in Western Australia in 2025. We are partnering with the Albanese Labor government to make these extra Fee-Free courses available with a contribution of $9.4 million in Federal Funding. We’re also adding seven more building and construction courses for Fee-Free TAFE in January 2025. These go across the areas of brick and block laying, wall and floor tiling, carpentry, cabinet making and timber technology, plumbing, painting and decorating and electric technology, taking the number of Fee-Free TAFE construction courses to 17 from January 2025.

Look, Western Australia’s role in these new Fee-Free building and construction courses will save around $1,400 each on their course fees. This is really important because these are targeting these pre-apprenticeship courses in absolutely crucial skilled areas around our construction industry. We want to build more homes. We want to see more building and construction take place in Western Australia. We need to have the workforce.

And, of course, we talk about skills migration, but the best response is to get that organic growth in our local community, training our young people for the jobs of the future. So the opportunity for these young people to come and try these pre-apprenticeship courses is absolutely vital in terms of getting them on the right pathway to life and giving them the opportunities that come with these jobs, boosting our workforce, making sure young people have an opportunity, really accelerating our building and construction industries.

This comes into sharp contrast to our friends in the Liberal and National Parties. When they were in government, they hiked TAFE fees by almost 500 per cent. We actually saw a drop of almost 33 per cent in the number of apprentices in traineeship take-up. So, you can see that they just don’t believe in this. And we want to set our state up for the future. We have the strongest economy in the nation. We want to keep it that way. And the way we can continue to do that is to make sure that we have the young people getting the skills and qualifications they need to take up the great economic opportunities that our strong labour market represents.

Through a lot of our work, we’ve been able to increase the number of young people – the number of jobs in Western Australia by over 320,000 since we were elected in 2017. So, the message of the day – don’t risk your vote on the Liberals and Nationals. They destroyed our training in the TAFE sector last time they were in government. You cannot risk the Liberals and Nationals coming into government, undermining our economy, tearing down our training and TAFE system and really not giving young people the opportunity for the future.

I’ll now hand you over to Minister Giles.

MINISTER FOR SKILLS AND TRAINING ANDREW GILES: Thanks very much, Premier. I’m really thrilled to be here with you at the North Metropolitan TAFE Clarkson Campus, a place that I’ve got really fond memories of coming to with my great friend Tracey Roberts. To be here with you, Tracey, with Mark and, of course, Simone McGurk, who I’ve worked so closely with is just fantastic. Because this is the proof point of what we’re talking about today – a really fantastic partnership between the Albanese government and the Cook government to deliver the skills Western Australians want and the skills the Western Australian economy needs.

Fee-Free TAFE has been a runaway success around the nation, particularly right here in WA where more than 63,000 West Australians have jumped at the opportunity it presents. And today we are committing nearly $10 million - $9.4 million – to enable an extra 2,140 Fee-Free construction places, to recognise, as the Premier said, that we really do need to encourage more people, especially young people, to gain those skills as part of building the houses Western Australians need.

And within those 2,140 places there are going to be some great stories. We just met Jasmine and Jordan, who I caught up with a few months ago, who have been doing their pre-apprenticeship here at this TAFE in wet trades. They’ve both just secured an apprenticeship. They are exactly what this announcement is about – opening up a pathway, teaching people skills that perhaps they didn’t know they had and which our economy so desperately needs.

And as the Premier said, this really points to a choice, because whether it’s at state level or nationally, the Liberals and the Nationals just don’t believe in TAFE. And, shockingly, they continue to describe Fee-Free TAFE as wasteful spending. Well, I’d really like for them all to come here to talk to some of the students about that. Should they be denying other young people the opportunity that Jasmine and Jordan have had, to make a career, to make a life and gain the skills they so desperately need.

And this is why I’m also proud last week in the parliament we introduced legislation to make Fee-Free TAFE free TAFE permanent – 100,000 places a year each financial year. And we’re doing it through a partnership with the Albanese government and the Cook government and governments around the country. Believe in our TAFE, so we can support every Australian with the skills they want and which our economy needs.

MINISTER FOR TRAINING AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SIMONE MCGURK: Nothing sends a clearer message to the community that we want them to train than offering a free course. We absolutely want people in Western Australia to get the message that we want them to train, particularly in building and construction. Helping to build WA homes. As a state we know there’s huge demand. We’re very, very happy to be partnering with the Albanese government, and I acknowledge Minister Giles for his work in understanding the demands that we have particularly here in Western Australia. And this announcement today to extend the number of Fee-Free courses is proof positive of that.

We are doing that, particularly around building and construction in the pre-apprenticeship courses. That gives people an opportunity, the students themselves, an opportunity to try their skills in different areas, and the Premier ran through those areas – electrotechnology, plumbing, bricklaying, tiling, carpentry, cabinet making. All of these practical jobs that we know that we need to keep our residential building and construction economy ticking along.

So, this is really important for pre-apprenticeships and then to get people into apprenticeships. But there has also been an expansion of the Fee-Free courses generally, and that’s been really welcome, particularly in building and construction where there’s such strong demand. And Minister Giles mentioned Jasmine and Jordan that we just met. This is what this is about. They are proof positive, again, of what these announcements are all about. And that is giving young people an opportunity to try their hand at different construction – in this case construction skills, and then to start to meet employers who then take up the opportunities to offer young people apprenticeships.

So, these announcements about Fee-Free is important because that is about the students being given the message that, you know, we want them in these in-demand areas like building and construction. To partner with that, we’ve also offered heavy subsidies to employers to ensure that they can take on apprentices, which is a heavy commitment, we understand. So as a result, at the moment in Western Australia, we’ve got 11,400 apprentices and trainees in our state. And in some areas that’s doubled what we had pre-Covid numbers. So, it really is impressive. We are also looking at skilled migration, but our absolute priority is to train young people, to train West Australians for jobs.

The Premier mentioned the track record that the Opposition, the State Opposition, has when it comes to vocational training. And it is worth reminding the public that what they did when they were last in Office was not only significantly increase fees – in some cases five-fold for some courses – which sent an immediate message to the market that we – that government didn’t want people to train, and we saw enrolments plummet. But more recently, the Liberals have released their housing policy, and that was a policy that they put out to say what they would do to increase residential housing in Western Australia.

It did not have one word in there about skills. It did not have one announcement, one consideration for what they would do to increase skilled labour to ensure that we have the people to deliver the housing that we know that we need. They have absolutely no credibility. The Liberals have absolutely no credibility when it comes to skills and training. I can understand that they want to shy away from the topic because their track record is so poor. But they cannot be taken seriously when people are asking what will they do to increase the housing supply and residential supply in our state if they don’t address the skills issue.

Very pleased to be here with the Federal Minister and the Premier to hammer this message home for West Australians. There are Fee-Free courses out there in building and construction, also across a range of areas. We want people to come in these areas.

I’ll take questions on this subject and then I’ll hand it over to the Federal Minister.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] says another 26,000 [Indistinct]?

MCGURK: It’s a huge challenge in terms of the projection of trades that we need in Western Australia. We know that residential construction is in hot demand and so is commercial infrastructure, energy transition. We’ve got Defence, always in-demand as a sector. So, there’s a range of industries where we know that apprenticeships and skilled labour will be in demand. That’s why we’re putting this effort in.

So, as I said, in some of the building and construction trades, we’ve doubled the number of apprentices and trainees from pre-COVID numbers, but there is more work to do. We’ve also worked on skilled migration, so it was actually under Minister Giles when he was in his previous portfolio that we reached an agreement to bring out – to increase the number of skilled migrants to 10,000 in Western Australia. And the last figures I saw for one of the programs in that, the Skilled Migration Program, State Nominated Migration Program, over a third of those were in building and construction. So that’s heartening. And we also have a targeted program for construction where employers are given a $10,000 incentive to bring – to sponsor skilled migrants into Western Australia.

Our preference is to train Western Australians, and that is important for young people, it’s important for the pipeline of work, it’s important for regional areas where those people are connected to the community. They already have housing. But we know we need those skills now. So we are active on all of those fronts to make sure that we can meet the demand, not compromise on quality but meet the demands out there. And this announcement today will continue that pipeline.

I’ll hand over to Minister Giles.

GILES: Thanks, Minister McGurk.

JOURNALIST: Minister, on a separate issue, four foreigners have reached Australia’s borders. Is Peter Dutton right when he says the PM is weak on border security?

GILES: Well, no, he’s not. And he knows that. It’s very irresponsible. Obviously, we can’t comment on operational matters that relates to Operation Sovereign Borders. That has been the practice of successive governments. But this is not an issue that anyone should be playing politics on.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] introduce the legislation to [indistinct] challenge?

GILES: Well, I’m not going to talk about advice. But obviously, this legislation, which obviously included amendments proposed by the Coalition on the basis that we thought was necessary and lawful.

JOURNALIST: But do you – [indistinct] it was a temporary ban [indistinct]?

GILES: And obviously you’d appreciate I can’t comment on legal advice, and I won’t. But obviously the legislation has been introduced into the parliament, which the parliament overwhelmingly supported the legislation, and it was brought forth as appropriate.

JOURNALIST: How much personal responsibility do you take for the former detainees are now out in the community again with limited monitoring?

GILES: Well, I’m not sure that that’s the case. I mean, you should, I direct you to the comments made by Minister Burke about the level of preparation that was undertaken for the result of the High Court ultimately delivered. Once again, it’s not the result that we worked towards, but it’s the result the High Court delivered. We were prepared for what was undertaken.

JOURNALIST: But they now don’t have GPS trackers on them, is that your fault?

GILES: No, it’s obviously a factor of the decision of the High Court. And, as I say, Minister Burke made very clear in the parliament last Thursday, we’ve put in place measures in the form of regulations and further legislation to maintain our absolute focus on community safety. Thanks very much.

COOK: Thanks very much. Any other questions?

JOURNALIST: On this announcement, will most of these workers end up working on Westport?

COOK: Well, they’re welcome to work on Westport or any of the other economy-leading and building infrastructure which will take place under my government. We know that the Western Australian economy is going strong. We want to maintain that strength. And we want to make sure that we employ as many locals with the skills they need to work on those projects. So, today’s announcement is really important. It goes in addition to the other 144 courses Fee-Free under the Western Australian TAFE and is a really important part of equipping our young people for the jobs of the future.

JOURNALIST: The Prime Minister says he has discussed election options with you but hasn’t directly asked you to shift the date of the WA state election. What’s your version of that conversation?

COOK: Well, that’s a correct characterisation of those discussions. Obviously, the Prime Minister and I talk about a range of issues and one of the issues was about the timing of the election. No, he did not share with me when that timing will be, but obviously, it’s important that we make sure that we’re ready for any contingency or any scenario.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]?

COOK: Well, we didn’t discuss the timing or anything of that nature. He inquired as to what the nature of our fixed dates were. I advised him that under our terms of the laws in Western Australia, it’s for the 8th of March. And in the context of that, if there is any clash or reason to change, there’s obviously flexibility within the legislation.

JOURNALIST: Who instigated the request that led to your advice?

COOK: Look, this is advice that I’ve sought because I understood that there will be a Federal Election sometime in the first half of the next year. So, any government – any government – who is responsibly managing the situation would obviously be aware of all contingencies and scenarios.

JOURNALIST: So, it was your idea to seek legal advice? It wasn’t suggested by anyone else?

COOK: Well, it might have been. It would have come out of discussions and conversations in my Office obviously with the Electoral Commissioner as well –

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct].

COOK: And it’s just about making sure that we are ready for any particular scenario.

JOURNALIST: Was it as a result of conversations with the Prime Minister?

COOK: No, we are undertaking a range of preparations for the election which is to occur on March the 8th. And we need to be aware of any contingencies in relation to that process.

JOURNALIST: The Electoral Act is currently before the Legislative Council. Is it an option to amend that to give you further wriggle room around that fixed date?

COOK: Well, our laws anticipate that from time to time it will be necessary to shift the date of the fixed term of our – according to our laws. And obviously, if it comes to this scenario when we do have to do that, we have contingencies and the ability to shift in relation to the date.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] one week, though?

COOK: That’s correct.

JOURNALIST: Which would still result in an early voting clash. That would be a concern?

COOK: Well, obviously we need to understand the needs in respect to the staging of the election. Ultimately that depends on when our Federal Election is. And I just caution everyone – there’s been no date set for the Federal Election. I can assure you the date for the state election is the 8th of March.

JOURNALIST: What do you say to Peter Dutton who says you are engaging in tricky deals with the Prime Minister?

COOK: Well, that’s entirely false, and it’s not surprising.

JOURNALIST: Have you had conversations – there is provisions that you could delay it two weeks if the State Opposition leader agrees. Have you had discussions to that effect with Shane Love?

COOK: I’ve indicated to Shane – and I’ve worked with Shane on a range of issues – I indicated to Shane that I would work with him in relation to all these matters. This is a similar matter that I’m prepared – that obviously I’ll be very happy to work with Shane on.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] are you concerned the PM is unpopular in WA?

COOK: Sorry?

JOURNALIST: Are you concerned the PM is unpopular in WA?

COOK: Well, look, I don’t believe he is unpopular. He has actually set a course for this nation which is continuing to grow our economy. He’s made the decisions, he’s made the investments and he’s provided the policy settings which continues to benefit all Western Australians.

JOURNALIST: Would you invite him on the campaign trail over here in terms of the state election?

COOK: Well, look, the Prime Minister – I don’t know if you’ve noticed – is the leader of the nation. So whether he’s involved in any aspects of the state campaign is entirely of his choosing. I understand he’s got a lot of responsibilities.

JOURNALIST: Are you wanting to change the date?

COOK: No, I don’t want to change the date. I’m ready for the election. This is a date that we’ve been working towards for a long time. And obviously, I’d be delighted if we can continue to just move forward with the 8th of March. That’s my focus.

JOURNALIST: The City of Perth is putting provisions in place to have, I suppose, a Deputy-Deputy Mayor, someone who can act as Mayor in the event that the Mayor and the Deputy can’t. Should that just be put in place now? Should Basil Zempilas resign And let the City of Perth start afresh?

COOK: Well, we’ve already made the observation that the Mayor of Perth is on one hand advocating for the people of Perth while on the other hand telling the people of Churchill that he’s advocating on their issues. He told the people of Perth that when he was elected he would stay for a full four years. Just three months later indicated that he would be aspiring towards representing the people of Churchill. This is entirely a matter for the City of Perth, but it really is a shemozzle which should be sorted.

JOURNALIST: And just back to the election?

COOK: Yeah, sure.

JOURNALIST: Obviously, polling out suggests a big swing away from your government but still [indistinct]. You must be feeling pretty comfortable [indistinct]?

COOK: Well, look, I’m very focused on the 8th of March. I’m focused on Western Australian jobs. I’m focused on keeping our economy strong, making sure we’ve got great investments in health and continuing to work very carefully on the housing challenges. And my focus has always been just get to the election date, make sure you humbly put your policies before the people of Western Australia and allow them to make the decision.

JOURNALIST: Just, again, on the conversations you and the Prime Minister have had about the available options in regards to the fixed date, you say he hasn’t indicated when the Federal Election would be. But surely then, you know, you talked about fixed dates and you told him what the parameters were, surely your first follow-up question would be: is it a chance? You know, is it 50-50. What is you got in mind? Like, surely you’ve asked him if it’s an option, if it’s a chance.

COOK: Well, one of the things about Australian politics is that there’s only one person that can tell you when the Federal Election is, and that’s the Prime Minister. And I wouldn’t insult his intelligence by popping the question and see if he could share that information with me.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] and the $80 million bailout for Rex, some of the regional communities are saying they’ve got unpaid bills from Rex Airlines still. Should they be paid for that?

COOK: Well, look, I welcome the announcement by the Federal Government to provide this important lifeline to Rex Airlines. They provide services to regional Western Australia which are very important for those communities. The $80 million will also make sure that we can look after the workers that have lost their jobs as a result of the financial difficulties that they confront. And obviously, if there is other outstanding commitments in relation to their financial responsibilities, I hope that they can find resolution through this package.

JOURNALIST: The CCC report was released yesterday, have you read it?

COOK: No, I haven’t read it. I’ve received a brief briefing in relation to its contents. And obviously it raises the ongoing issue of maintaining integrity in our public service. As I made the observation yesterday, it is not surprising that people who work for politicians are working to assist that politician get re-elected. But it’s important they do so with integrity and respect for the roles that they play as a full-time public servant.

JOURNALIST: Shouldn’t you have read it? I mean, it’s talking about a risk of serious misconduct within Labor Electorate Offices. Surely that’s important enough for you to read?

COOK: Yeah, well, as you say, it says that there’s a potential for risk, but it doesn’t say there has been any risk.

JOURNALIST: It does say that there’s suspected there was some Electorate Offices were working in their work time, but it could prove that there’s no actual proper record. So should that be rectified at least?

COOK: Well, I’ll leave that up to the CCC to speculate on.

JOURNALIST: But don’t you – isn’t it up to you to decide whether to act on the CCC’s recommendation? And yet you haven’t read it yet.

COOK: And we will be looking at the CCC report and responding to it in due course. Thank you very much.