Barnett likes to blame the GST system but as one comment on the article points out he as teasurer signed WA up to the GST. It was all sweetness and light then accordibg to him. Like Howard who created the structural deficit Barnett thought the mining boom was forever ie pixies in the garden.

Barnett did what Swan did federally....thought the good times would roll with the mining and based his forward estimates on that.

Bad bad move.  Many times I have read where we had too much reliance on China and if they sneeze we would catch the cold.   Well, it has happened.

I am extremely angry at the way Barnett has operated as Premier as many many others are.  

I care nought if he is Liberal he has done the wrong thing and he will pay for this at the next election. 

if only the federal guvmit had kept the mining tax - as recommmended by ken henry of the treasury in his tax review a few years ago.   most of the big mining companies are foreign owned and our minerals and just about all of the profits all go overseas.  the pittance we get in royalties - paid to the state governments - is spent building much of the infrastructure for the big mning companies to enjoy at our expense.

the smart country?  the smarting country is a better description.