- Budget delivers real cost-of-living relief
and housing for communities in the Pilbara
- Investments to support Karratha and Port Hedland
drive future economic opportunities for the region
- Cook Labor Government to invest $9.5 billion
in infrastructure throughout regional Western Australia over the next four
years
- More
than $4 billion delivered through Royalties for Regions Program
- Government Regional Officer Housing in Port
Hedland and Karratha to be built in partnership with BHP, Rio Tinto, and
Hancock through the Resources Community Investment Initiative
- Part of Cook Labor Government's priority of
delivering jobs, health, education, creating safe and inclusive communities,
and protecting and restoring WA's environment
The Cook Labor Government
is delivering for the Pilbara in the 2026-27 State Budget through investments
in health, housing, and jobs for the region, while providing significant cost-of-living
relief for families.
Regional Western Australia
has been central to the economic success of the State for generations and
building strong regional cities in Western Australia is vital to unlock the
next wave of opportunities.
Seven regional cities,
including Karratha and Port Hedland, will drive delivery of new economic
opportunities across the State. In particular, the development of large-scale
renewables will mean we can make more things here, export embedded renewable
energy in WA products, and realise opportunities in space, data centres and emerging
technologies like AI. The seven cities are Karratha, Port Hedland, Broome,
Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Bunbury and Albany.
Karratha and Port Hedland
must be ready to seize these new economic opportunities, which requires
housing, infrastructure and services to support growth, so it can attract and
retain families and skilled workers.
It must also be capable
of servicing surrounding communities and industries, which is what this Budget
will deliver with housing a key priority.
As part of this, the Cook
Labor Government will deliver new Government Residential Officer Houses in
Karratha and Port Hedland in partnership with Rio Tinto, BHP, and Hancock
Prospecting through the Resource Community Investment Initiative.
The following initiatives
will help unlock and deliver more land supply, build new homes, and help first
home buyers get into the market in Karratha, Port Hedland and throughout the
Pilbara:
- $1.6
billion for the construction and refurbishment of more than 1,800 social and
affordable dwellings, 500 homes for first home buyers, land acquisition, and
maintenance;
- participation in the Commonwealth's 100,000
Homes for First Home Buyers program, supporting the delivery of 11,000
dwellings over eight years reserved exclusively for first home buyers;
- the delivery of 305 homes for regional
frontline workers in Karratha and Port Hedland, in partnership with Western
Australia's resources industry as part of its Seven Cities vision for regional
WA;
- $250 million Keystart Pre‑sale
Guarantee and $250 million First Home Buyer Commercial Financing
Facility to help developers meet pre‑sale thresholds and support more
apartment and affordable homes project for first home buyers to get off the
ground sooner;
- $297
million tax package to support first home buyers and boost housing supply,
including first homeowner duty concessions, increased first homeowner grant
cap, and an extension of the off-the-plan transfer duty concession;
- $127 million top-up to the Remote Communities Fund to deliver additional
housing investment, undertake municipal works, and support essential
infrastructure and services in remote Aboriginal communities;
- $75 million to boost the supply of
residential land in the Pilbara, with 121 lots to be developed at South Hedland
Western Edge;
- $50 million top-up to the Regional
Housing Support Fund, increasing the fund's value to $75 million. The fund
provides grants to support local housing and residential subdivision projects
in regional WA; and
- $48 million to boost modular housing and
apartment construction capacity via investment in advanced manufacturing
facilities in Kwinana and Neerabup. The facilities are expected to provide
prefabricated housing and infrastructure to regional WA.
Real cost-of-living
relief will be delivered to Western Australians living in the Pilbara through a
range of initiatives that provide financial support for households, with the Cook
Labor Government committing $198 million for a $100 Fuel Support Payment
available to those with a valid driver's licence.
A further $89.5
million will be invested to deliver a third round of the Western Australian
Student Assistance Payment, which will provide $150 for each primary and
kindergarten student and $250 for each secondary school student - including for
the families of around 11,300 students in the Pilbara.
Other
cost-of-living relief measures funded as part of this Budget include:
- $36.4 million for to provide free public
transport for school students, including for Transregional services in Karratha
and Port Hedland;
- $35 million for a 10 per cent uplift in the
value of the Energy Assistance Payment, Dependent Child Rebate, and Air
Conditioning Allowance;
- $33.7 million for to provide free travel on
Transregional services on Sundays, including in Karratha;
- $16 million to extend Energy Ahead, helping
Western Australians who are experiencing financial stress to improve their
energy efficiency and save on their power bills;
- $14.5 million to establish a new Foster and
Grand Carer Gold Card, offering concessions
to carers providing a stable home and support to children and young people in
out‑of‑home
care arrangements;
- $13.5 million to extend the WA Rent Relief
Program;
- ongoing support for the
Regional Airfare Zone Cap Scheme to keep airfares capped and affordable for
eligible regional residents amid increasing fuel costs; and
$3.8 million to allow
Nexus Airlines for operating the Inter-Regional Flight Network,
including for flights to and from Karratha and Port Hedland.
The Cook Labor
Government's vision is to diversify WA's nation-leading economy so that it
remains the strongest in the nation will be secured in the Pilbara through the
following investments as part of the 2026-27 State Budget.
To support this, $67.3
million will be invested in PoweringWA as part of for the Pilbara Energy
Transition, supporting decarbonisation of the Burrup Peninsula.
New industries will also
be supported with $32 million for delivery of the Newman Light Industrial Area
and $27.1 million from the Strategic Industries Fund for planning and design
activities required to activate the Boodarie Strategic Industrial Area near
Port Hedland:
- more than $150 million in loans to manufacturers
to improve energy efficiency and invest in advanced manufacturing equipment as
part of the Made in WA Energy Affordability Investment Program;
- $124 million for lower fee and fee-free TAFE
in 2027, including at campuses in South Hedland, Karratha, Newman, Tom Price, and Roebourne;
- $113.5 million for road maintenance across
WA;
- $50 million investment by the Pilbara Ports
Authority, funded by port users, to deliver the Port Hedland Zone 5 Bypass
Channel;
- $33.1 million contribution to the nationally
coordinated Fuel Excise Relief Program, and a further $4.5 million for the deferral
of heavy vehicle fee increases, supporting industry in the Pilbara;
- $30 million to top up the Investment Attraction
Fund for a second round of grants through the New Energies Industries Funding
Stream;
- $18 million to deliver Aboriginal tourism
initiatives under the Jina: Western
Australian Aboriginal Tourism Action Plan 2026-2030;
- $10.6 million to establish and operate the Clean
Energy Training and Research Institute;
- $2.4 million for the Aboriginal Pastoral Program
in the Pilbara and Kimberley regions; and
- $1.4 million to deliver a second round of the
Small Business Growth Grants Program.
The 2026-27 State
Budget will ensure all regional Western Australians can access the healthcare
they need, when they need it, including through an additional $60.8
million investment to deliver Tom Price Hospital.
Other major health
initiatives in this Budget include:
- $294 million additional investment in regional
health infrastructure;
- $214 million for an uplift to WA Health's State-wide
maintenance programs;
- $143 million for additional investment in
medical equipment and imaging replacement program throughout WA;
- $68.6 million for the WA Country Health Service for
regional palliative care, renal care, cancer and eye services, and continued
support programs;
- $49.8 million for the State's investment in the
Child Development Services System Reform Program;
- $43.8 million for a funding uplift for existing
community mental health and alcohol and other drug services;
- $29.7 million for and expand suicide prevention
initiatives;
- $27.1 million for the free flu vaccine, FluMist,
and RSV immunisation programs; amd
- $4.1 million to expand the Enhanced Access
Community Pharmacy Pilot project.
Quality infrastructure
and services will also be supported through the Budget with $3.5 million to
widen and reconstruct Stovehill Road in Karratha.
Schools in the Pilbara
are also set to benefit from the following investments:
$310 million uplift in funding to
support students with disability at public schools:
- $219 million boost to maintenance, benefiting
all schools, including those in the Pilbara;
- more than $100 million for targeted maintenance and minor works projects across WA, which
includes work on roofs, hardcourts and toilets, as well as additional investment in the
Schools Clean Energy Technology Fund;
- $41.1 million to fully fund the commitment of 61 minor upgrade projects
for
undercover areas, courts, play areas, STEM facilities and parking, which
includes Dampier Primary School, Peg's Creek Primary School, South Hedland Primary School, and Hedland Senior
High School; and
- $15.7 million to significantly expand access
to training and support for staff working with students with disability.
The Cook Labor Government
will continue building safe and inclusive communities so that all Western
Australians feel secure at home and at work.
Youth justice initiatives
will be key to this in the Pilbara, with $24.2 million for WA Police for
Operation Regional Shield, boosting police resources when they are needed in
the Pilbara, and $2.4 million to offer an alternative pathway from the criminal
justice system through the Yiwarra Kuju - Martu Western Desert Justice Program.
Other investments in
community safety include:
- $421 million for child protection services,
in addition to $52.4 million extra support for foster carers and grandcarers;
- $361 million for Foundational Supports -
Thriving Kids services over the next five years, to provide support for children aged
8 and under with developmental delays or autism;
- $91.1 million funding boost for new and
continuing homelessness services;
- $61.4 million for the Target 120 early
intervention program, including in Newman and Karratha;
- $60.7 million for road safety awareness and
education programs across WA;
- $44.6 million uplift in operational funding
for family and domestic violence refuges and safe houses across WA, inclusive
of $11.6 million in operating costs for five new or expanded refuges currently
under development, including in Newman;
- $37.7 million for statewide rollout of
Aboriginal Representative Organisations;
- $31.2 million towards the
fire and emergency fleet replacement throughout WA;
- $20.3 million funding uplift for at-risk
youth services around the State;
- $29.5 million uplift in resourcing for the
Home Stretch WA service supporting young people as they age out of the child
protection system, including in the Pilbara;
- $10.1 million to support Closing the Gap
Implementation Plan initiatives;
- $5.8 million for the Martu Student Hostel program
in Newman; and
- $1.5 million to support continuation of the
safeSPACE program, including in Roebourne.
Protecting and
restoring WA's environment so future generations can continue enjoying its
economic and lifestyle benefits will be secured with the following investments:
- $52.9 million
to establish a Regional Water Source Fund for water source planning and
investigation in regional Western Australia;
- $24.7
million for biosecurity and animal disease preparedness activities;
- $16
million for the Minerals Research Institute of WA clean energy and emissions
research program; and
- $7.9
million to upgrade Harding Dam in the West Pilbara and secure water supply in
the region.
For more information, visit ourstatebudget.wa.gov.au
Comments
attributed to Premier Roger Cook:
"Whether you live in
Karratha, Port Hedland, or the towns and remote communities throughout the
Pilbara region, this Budget delivers for Western Australians and keeps WA
strong.
"Our regions have been
central to WA becoming the strongest economy in the nation and will be critical
to our future economic success.
"That's why this Budget
will help seize the big job-creating projectsin regional WA, with investments
in the economic infrastructure needed to expand our Seven Cities as hubs to
provide quality services to the towns and remote communities within their regions."
Comments
attributed to Regional Development Minister Stephen Dawson:
"The Cook Labor
Government is investing in the Pilbara region to support strong local
economies, quality frontline services, and more jobs opportunities.
"From health and
housing to roads and cost-of-living measures, our government is working to
deliver projects and outcomes that make a real difference in our regional
communities
"Whether people live in
one of our Seven Cities, a small town or a remote community, this government is
committed to delivering for regional WA."
Comments
attributed to Pilbara Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson:
"With
a pipeline of job creating projects, major boosts to housing stock and funding
for key infrastructure, this is a budget that puts the Pilbara first.
"We
are committed to diversifying the Pilbara economy and driving growth, so the
region can remain a great place to live, work and raise a family for
generations to come.
"The
Cook Government will always do what's right for the Pilbara so the engine room
of our nation's economy can thrive into the future."
Comments
attributed to Pilbara MLA Kevin Michel:
"The
Pilbara region is a great place to live, get a job, and raise a family.
"The
Cook Labor Government continues to support our region by backing jobs and local
growth, with major investment in health infrastructure, alongside support for
housing and key services.
"We're
also delivering practical cost-of-living relief for Pilbara families, while
boosting housing supply and investing in regional infrastructure to support
local communities and ensure the region continues to play its role in WA's
nation-leading economy."
