GST share still unfair: Barnett
Colin Barnett has renewed his call for a simpler redistribution of the national GST pool according to population.
And the Premier says he still fears that WA's share could fall to 7c in the dollar, despite a more favourable distribution projection for the 2014-2015 financial year than had been forecast.
The West Australian revealed yesterday the Commonwealth Grants Commission has decided that WA will get 37.6c in every GST dollar raised in the State in 2014-15.
Though this is down from the 45c in the dollar WA receives this year, it is higher than the 27c in the dollar that was forecast by WA Treasury last August.
The CGC's decision means WA's Budget would get up to an extra $500 million in 2014-15, with much of the windfall flowing from Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey's direction that royalty revenue from iron ore "fines" continue to be regarded as "low value" for purposes of the GST carve-up.
Mr Barnett said despite the uplift for 2014-15, the system remained "grossly unfair".
"I actually want WA to get in the coming year at least what we get in this year and I want to see the inequality slowly corrected over time," Mr Barnett said.
"I'd like to actually be better off. GST revenue is growing."
Mr Barnett said WA continued to be penalised by the CGC for a strong mining industry when other States' gambling revenues were not taken into consideration by its funding formula.
"What we need in Australia is a simple system of allocating GST revenues according to population," he said.
Shadow treasurer Ben Wyatt said Mr Barnett's calls for a fairer GST deal were starting to sound "shrill and desperate" in light of the fact that Prime Minister Tony Abbott was clearly ignoring him after five years of the same gripe.
In response to the news of the State Government's GST windfall, the Education Alliance - made up of three unions and the Save Our Schools parents group - called on the Government to "put back the $180 million it ripped out of public education last year".
