More pain for households as WA government hands down 'no frills' budget

WA households will pay more for utilities as the McGowan government battles to reign in the state’s mountain of debt.

Utilities, public transport and car registration fees will all rise, hitting the average family $292 per year.

The hike in power prices will slug average households around $121 a year, and car registration will go up by $20.

Public Transport will receive a boost, with $3.6 billion in state and federal funds allocated for the Metronet project.

The Government says its low-spending, no-frills approach is paying off, with the state’s budget deficit for this financial year slashed in half.

The budget forecasts a $1.3 billion dollar surplus by 2020/21.

Treasurer Ben Wyatt said it has “almost killed” him to restrain the state’s spending growth to 0.9%.

The Government said it still plans to sell off the TAB and Landgate, but has been unable to finalise the sale before this budget.

It is also banking on a boom in lithium sales to boost the state’s coffers, with global demand for the resource expected to more than triple in the next decade.

The Government says it is on track to reach its target of three thousand public sector redundancies, with a thousand job cuts still to go.