Media Release | 30 December 2025
Lachlan Hunter MLA
Shadow Minister for Racing and Gaming
Shadow Minister for Racing and Gaming Lachlan Hunter MP has said the Cook Labor Government’s decision to announce a review into the governance and sustainability of WA racing in the final days of 2025 is a clear attempt to avoid scrutiny and dodge accountability.
After months of pressure from the Opposition and repeated questions in Parliament, Labor has finally acknowledged that the racing industry is under serious strain.
Instead of engaging openly with participants earlier in the year, Labor has chosen to quietly release a review when Parliament has finished and much of the industry is on its Christmas and New Year break.
“This review is not leadership; it is a delay tactic,” said Mr Hunter.
“As Shadow Minister for Racing and Gaming, I have consistently raised concerns about the broader funding environment facing racing, including the deteriorating position of the WA-owned TAB, rising operating costs, and unsustainable settings that are putting pressure on the entire industry.
“These are structural issues created by government policy choices, not by participants, and they affect every code across Western Australia.”
In December, Mr Hunter asked the Minister for Racing and Gaming, Paul Papalia, how the Government intended to provide certainty for an industry that supports thousands of jobs and underpins communities across Perth and regional WA.
“The Minister acknowledged the challenge but failed to offer a clear plan or any assurance to participants whose livelihoods depend on racing.
“Now, instead of answers, the industry gets a last-minute review with no clarity about its consequences.”
The Cook Labor Government has refused to say whether the review will lead to cuts to regional race meetings, reductions in stakes funding, or job losses across the sector.
It has also not ruled out impacts on any code, including greyhound racing, and has offered no guarantee that communities in Perth or the regions will not be left paying the price.
“Will Labor sell off the WA-owned TAB to international gambling companies?”
“What makes this even more galling is Labor’s misplaced priorities,” said Mr Hunter.
“While the racing industry faces an unfolding crisis, the Cook Labor Government is more interested in headline-grabbing pet projects, including pouring $217 million into a new motor racetrack in Burswood.
“Labor seems far more comfortable cutting ribbons on mega-projects than dealing with the real and immediate challenges confronting an industry that delivers sustainable, long-term employment right across Western Australia.
“Racing matters. It matters in Perth, where it supports thousands of direct and indirect jobs, and it matters even more in regional WA, where race days are often the largest economic and social events of the year.
“They drive tourism, support local businesses, and keep communities alive.
“Even the Minister has acknowledged that racing provides employment for many thousands of Western Australians and is often the biggest event in regional towns.
“If Labor genuinely values the racing industry, it should be focused on stabilising it, not sidelining it. That means real engagement, transparency, and policy settings that support sustainability — not a review dropped at the eleventh hour to buy time and shift blame.
“The racing industry deserves certainty, honesty, and leadership.
“Instead, it has been handed a late-December review while Labor chases prestige projects and hopes the hard questions go away.”
The Opposition will scrutinise this review closely and will continue to stand up for racing participants, workers, and communities across Perth and regional Western Australia, who deserve far better than this.
ENDS
