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Old 23-07-2021, 01:13 PM   #47
Crazy Dazz
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Perth, Northern Suburbs
Posts: 4,883
Default Re: Regional differences in Australia

Quote:
Originally Posted by shedcoupe View Post
Back then Qld = conservative verging on redneck, but WA = conservative but tolerant.
The reason WA tended to lean conservative, was simply because in those days the local Labour party were all ardent Federalists, and for the Libs everything was about "States Rights"

Our Labor Premier, mr Magoo, recently won a massive landslide, based on a single policy.
Officially known as "The Rest of Australia can F_ck Off"

WA never wanted to be part of Australia. Read the Constitution, we were not included, and were only to be added if we informed the Queen of such a desire.
A referendum was supposedly held, and somehow ran completely contrary to public opinion at the time. Depending on which version you believe for this turn around, it was either a fraud, or the vote was turned by the Goldfields, where the Federalists bribed the inhabitants by promising to deport all the non-whites.

Hardly surprising then, that in the 30's WA voted in a Referendum to leave the Commonwealth. Ironically the only reason we're still part of the Federation is because in those days the final say rested with the Privy Council.

It didn't help matters that in the following war, Canberra's official policy was to abandon WA to the Japanese.

There is only one road connecting WA to the other states, and that wasn't sealed until the 1970's.
Perth is over 3,000km from Canberra. (Jakarta is marginally closer.)
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