The Western Australian Government has released its blueprint for the establishment of Infrastructure WA (IWA), an independent body that will provide advice on infrastructure needs and planning across the state.
At a Property Council breakfast in Perth yesterday morning, Premier Mark McGowan announced that the new advisory board – a Labor election promise – would be established in early 2019, following a 12-month period during which enabling legislation for the new body will be put to parliament, and consultation carried out with industry groups and the public.
McGowan said that the IWA, as an independent board, would provide the government with expert advice to help develop a 20-year infrastructure investment strategy.
“For too long, the State has suffered from a short-term focus on infrastructure planning. There is a strong need for a co-ordinated, long-term vision to build the infrastructure we need in the right place and at the right time,” McGowan said.
“By developing a 20-year strategy, IWA will identify the infrastructure needed to keep growing the economy and create jobs, providing certainty to industry and encouraging private sector investment.”
The IWA will assess proposals for infrastructure projects priced at $100 million or more, along with high-risk smaller projects, with the evaluation process to include community and stakeholder consultation and business case analysis.
Much like other similar bodies, the IWA will also form a priority list for projects stretching over the 20-year planning period.
McGowan said that establishing an independent statutory body would make infrastructure planning less prone to political influence and the uncertainty resulting from changes in government.
“Infrastructure has long been held hostage to political cycles,” the premier said. “We’ve seen too many cases of major projects blowing out without business cases and government money being wasted.”
Moreover, the development of an overarching long-term strategy safeguarded by the independent IWA, McGowan suggested, would lead to greater bipartisanship in the infrastructure commitments put forward by various political parties.
“Where politicians now or in future decide to reject its advice, they will be required to account for those decisions.”
Once the IWA is established, Western Australia will join the likes of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Tasmania in possessing an independent infrastructure advisory body.
The board will consist of five representatives from the public sector, five industry representatives, and a chairman sourced from the private sector.
The government will be consulting the public over the next six weeks, with members of the public able to submit feedback until 20 March. Industry stakeholders will also be able to attend information forums being held later this month.
“We need to get this right in order to plan for the State that we would like to leave our children and grandchildren. I encourage the public to consider the proposal and provide feedback during the consultation period,” McGowan said.