The announcement that ATCO will decommission Albany’s gas network is deeply disappointing for our community.

For decades, local households and businesses have relied on this infrastructure, built to support regional growth and provide energy security.

Now, that certainty is being pulled out from under us. While ATCO’s decision is ultimately a commercial one, it highlights a much bigger issue: the long-term consequences of decisions made by governments in the past.

In the early 2000s, the then-Liberal government made the decision to privatise the Albany gas network.

At the time, it was framed as a move toward economic reform. What we are seeing now is the reality of that choice.

When essential infrastructure is sold into private hands, control shifts.

Decisions that were once made in the public interest are instead driven by commercial viability. And when a regional network like Albany’s no longer meets those commercial thresholds, companies can, and do, walk away.

That is exactly what is happening here. Let’s be clear: this situation is not the result of a single decision made overnight.

It is the product of decades-old policy that removed public ownership from critical energy infrastructure.

The consequences of that are now landing squarely on regional communities like ours.

This stands in stark contrast to the benefits West Australians continue to see where public ownership has been retained and protected.

Successive Labor governments have made a deliberate choice to keep key energy assets in public hands, and that decision is paying dividends.

Our State’s publicly owned electricity system has helped shield households from extreme price volatility.

West Australians have benefited from stable, regulated pricing and a system designed with the public interest at its core.

It is a clear example of what happens when essential services remain in public hands: governments retain the ability to prioritise affordability, reliability and long-term planning over short-term profit, and to step in when communities need support.

We have seen similar challenges emerge in other sectors where privatisation has taken hold.

The Court Liberal government’s sale of WA’s freight rail network has placed increasing pressure on regional communities, particularly our farmers.

Access, pricing and maintenance decisions are no longer solely about supporting the State’s economy, they are influenced by commercial returns.

For many in regional WA, that has meant higher costs, reduced flexibility and growing uncertainty about the future of critical supply chains.

In contrast, Labor has continued to invest in regional infrastructure and services, recognising that strong communities depend on reliable, accessible networks, not just profitable ones.

As a Labor government, we are committed to supporting Albany through the decommissioning.

We understand the uncertainty this creates for households and businesses, and we will work closely with the community and take practical steps to support affected customers.

That’s why we have already announced $10.8m to assist social housing properties to transition to alternative energy sources, and assess options for the wider community.

We have successfully advocated to ATCO for the transition to be pushed back to next year to give us more time to plan.

But we should also be honest about how we got here.

Privatisation promised efficiency, but it also meant relinquishing control. And when private operators make decisions that affect entire communities, governments are left to manage the fallout rather than prevent it.

Albany deserves better than that. This moment should serve as a reminder: essential services are exactly that. Essential.

When they remain in public hands, they can be managed for the long-term benefit of all West Australians, not just the bottom line.

And that is why Labor will continue to back public ownership of our energy utilities, putting communities first, not just in the short term, but for generations to come.

Samantha Rowe is a member of the Legislative Council and is the parliamentary secretary to the Deputy Premier; treasurer; minister for transport; sport and recreation.