“Blue on Green wars” predicted as Liberals’ call for cooperation “ignored” by Nationals

South West Region Liberal MLC Steve Thomas says he is “deeply saddened” by a Nationals WA snub which has prompted his Labor counterpart to predict the return of “Blue on Green wars” ahead of the March State Election. Dr Thomas — the shadow regional development minister — announced he would seek to work with his would-be Coalition partners on the Royalties for Regions fund after being handed the portfolio last Monday. But the Margaret River-based MLC claims his call for co-operation went unheeded. “Within 24 hours of taking over the portfolio I wrote to Mia Davies as the Nationals’ regional development spokesperson and suggested we meet to discuss how we might work better together,” he said. “And to this date I’ve had no response. “I’m deeply saddened by that.” Ms Davies would not be drawn on whether her party had issued a “firm rejection” or if she had “ignored” Dr Thomas’ request to work together on the flagship regional fund. The Nationals WA leader instead highlighted the independence of her party from the Liberals. “We are developing our own policy as we prepare for the March 2021 State election,” Ms Davies said. “In relation to Royalties for Regions, at our State Conference in Exmouth last year we committed to return the integrity of the program and use it for genuine regional development purposes.” Regional Development Minister Alannah MacTiernan — who is responsible for overseeing the fund — will face off with Dr Thomas in a South West showdown after being shifted to Labor’s ticket for the electorate, which stretches from Mandurah to Albany. Ms MacTiernan said the disunity between her major political opponents was nothing new. “The Blue on Green wars were a key feature of the previous government, and we appear to be set for an encore in the lead-up to the next election,” she said. “The disunity at the heart of the Liberal-National coalition government destabilised the State’s finances.” The 2017 State election campaign was littered with spot fires inside the Liberal-National alliance, culminating in a heated exchange on election eve in which then-Nationals leader Brendon Grylls accused former premier Colin Barnett of a “final betrayal” over Royalties for Regions. His accusation came after Mr Barnett revealed his intention to siphon as much as $800 million from R4R to pay for upkeep of services such as water, public transport and Aboriginal community utilities which had previously come out of consolidated revenue. The former Nationals leader said such a move would end his party’s support for the Liberals, to which Mr Barnett said: “We are the major party and we will set the agenda”.