My singular focus as a member of the Australian Senate is ensuring both Western Australia and its people are able to reach their full potential. I believe best way we can achieve this is through big and bold thinking, sound economic management, careful and minimal regulation, job-enabling and wealth-creating legislation and a good, traditional Liberal government.
As a state, we’re leading the nation and, in many cases, the world in research and development for processing and refining lithium and rare earths; in ground-breaking technology for the resources industry; and in building the agriculture industry of the future.
“Western Australia is a state with endless potential, but we also have a great deal of work to do to ensure that we fully realise it.”
We also have unique and deepening economic and cultural relationships with nations in our near region. We’re on the same time zone, plus or minus two hours, with 60 per cent of the global population and have overlapping business hours with key markets in Europe, the US, the Middle East and Asia. And despite Perth being an isolated city, we’re also Australia’s gateway to the great cities of the world.
China and India, along with nations on their periphery, have growing middle classes. People for the first time are seeking to explore the world and grow individual wealth. There are also key markets on our doorstep for new inbound investment and tourism opportunities.
“We need to ensure growth benefits not just the Western Australian and national economy but individuals and the communities in which they live.”
Despite our large size of around one-third of the Australian continent, the spread and scope of economic opportunity does not match the spread of our population, with around 92 per cent of Western Australians living in the city and southwest. It’s time we restart the discussion on not only how we grow the economy in regional and remote Western Australia but how we ensure this growth delivers employment, opportunities and practical development outcomes for the communities in which it occurs.
“We need to develop a vision in the same spirit of those great Western Australians who came before us who weren't afraid to think big and be bold.”
