Nationals cool on airport bid
Rank-and-file members of the WA Nationals have overwhelmingly dismissed a bid to locate the State’s second biggest airport between Bunbury and Mandurah.
The plan was supported by a handful of people during the party’s State conference in Margaret River and was opposed by Moore MLA Shane Love and Kalgoorlie MLA Wendy Duncan.
However, WA Nationals Collie-Preston branch president James Hayward said he was optimistic the plan could be adopted as party policy at a future conference.
He admitted the motion was not supported because of concerns the airport would be built using money from Royalties for Regions.
However, Mr Hayward said it was never the intention to underwrite the project using the fund.
He also denied the branch had been too ambitious with its plan.
“There is no way anything the Nationals put up is ambitious,” he said.
WA Nationals leader Terry Redman said there was still room for expansion at Perth Airport before a second airport was needed.
He also supported the South West Development Commission’s preference for an upgrade of Busselton Airport.
He said an upgrade could benefit the South West towns’ reliant on tourism, including Margaret River, Nannup and Manjimup.
“I note the notion of having the second airport somewhere between Bunbury and Perth didn’t get up, ” he said.
“So there must have been discussion about it and it was knocked on the head.”
During the debate on the plan, Mr Love said it was unwise to pick a location for a second airport before there was a public discussion of the plan.
However, he supported the airport being built in regional WA.
