Search
thewest.com.au
OpinionChevron Right Icon

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Poisoned chaliceCommentsPremium
opinion
Tough road ahead for new WA Health minister

To say that Amber-Jade Sanderson has a tough gig as WA’s new Health Minister is probably the understatement of the century.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Time upCommentsPremium
opinion
Why Roger Cook won’t be Health Minister next year

Word within Government circles is that Cook himself believes it’s time for fresh eyes to be in charge of the health portfolio after a 13-year-stint as either Opposition health spokesman or Health Minister.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Joe SpagnoloCommentsPremium
opinion
Why 2022 is set to be Mark McGowan’s toughest year yet

The border announcements over the past few days add up to one glaring truth — that 2022 could well be Mark McGowan’s most challenging year as Premier.

Joe Spagnolo

Unhealthy systemCommentsPremiumGovernment must fix PCH problems to regain our trust

McGowan and Cook need to convince the public that concerns and recommendations raised in the Aishwarya inquiry are taken seriously — but more importantly — acted upon, writes Joe Spagnolo.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Telethon MemoryComments
opinion
The day my piano accordion solo made it to Telethon

Most kids get an electric guitar or drums from their parents when they show any aptitude for music. I got a piano accordion.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Milking itCommentsPremium
opinion
Is McGowan milking the GST row for all it’s worth?

Opposition leader Mia Davies believes Mark McGowan is milking the GST battle with the east for all it’s worth — and she’s probably right.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Election countdownCommentsPremium
opinion
Liberals’ woes a boost for Anthony Albanese and Labor

Anthony Albanese will try and press all the right buttons in today’s address to the WA faithful at a WA Labor state conference in Perth.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
WA heroesCommentsPremium
opinion
Those who really delivered our historic grand final

As we enjoy the afterglow of a once-in-a-lifetime occasion for the west, here are the people we need to thank for making it happen.

Joe Spagnolo

Sub Hopes SunkCommentsPremiumWA may not forgive and forget subs deal on election day

Seemingly, Scott Morrison reckons he has done enough to keep West Australians voting blue at the next federal election, despite giving the chocolate biscuits to South Australia. I’m not so sure.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
COVID cloudCommentsPremium
opinion
Albanese hanging onto McGowan’s popularity on a thread

McGowan is about as popular as The Beatles when they arrived in Australia in 1964. But a major COVID-19 infiltration into WA could change that – and that spells bad news for Anthony Albanese.

Joe Spagnolo

analysis
analysis
No surplus without bordersCommentsPremium
analysis
Beautiful numbers, as long as COVID doesn’t head west

There is significant pressure on McGowan to fall into line with the PM’s call to drop the hard border. But if COVID-19 comes west his ‘beautiful’ budget numbers will swiftly lose their sparkle.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
State BudgetCommentsPremium
opinion
McGowan has 5 billion reasons to keep border closed

This Thursday Mark McGowan will have a new weapon to argue why WA's border should remain shut past Christmas.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Joe SpagnoloCommentsPremium
opinion
McGowan right to listen to WA on lockdowns and borders

I am confident that when the majority of West Australians want a different WA, that when they want lockdowns and hard borders ditched, they will air their views loudly. But that hasn’t come yet.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Election planCommentsPremium
opinion
Border blue key to Albo’s WA blitz

Federal Labor appears to have learnt a thing, or two, about the last election flogging.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Moment of truthPremium
opinion
Liberal review of State election must be brutal, honest

For die-hard Liberals, August 28 will be an important day when we find out whether WA Libs are dinkum about resurrecting a once proud party which is now the laughing stock of Australian politics.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Brand PerthCommentsPremium
opinion
Cops and shops key to fixing Perth’s troubled CBD

I love Perth. The city has been my home for nearly 16 years and has changed a lot in that time. Some changes have made Perth a better place to live, and visit. Some changes have made it much worse.

Joe Spagnolo

circuit-breaking lockdownCommentsPremiumMcGowan is making the rest of them look stupid

And the winner is ... Mark McGowan! Whether you support Labor or not you have to agree — he has been proven 100 per cent correct in terms of his hard and fast COVID-19 lockdown strategy.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Personal stoushCommentsPremium
opinion
Why this bad blood could spell trouble for Coalition

A bit of biffo between the federal Nats and their WA colleagues is nothing new. But the bad blood between WA Nationals leader Mia Davies and federal leader Barnaby Joyce is something different.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Playing it safeCommentsPremium
opinion
Why I’m glad I had the AstraZeneca vaccine

I had my first AstraZeneca jab nearly two weeks ago. While many young people are proudly declaring they have received their Pfizer jab, there are few AstraZeneca testimonials. That should change.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Try Harder MarkCommentsPremium
opinion
McGowan must make serious pitch for AFL grand final

Last night’s sell-out Dreamtime game between Essendon and Richmond is proof that Mark McGowan needs to start pitching for a grand final in Perth.

Joe Spagnolo

Power bill painCommentsPremiumPolitical golden boy McGowan to be tested on Budget day

Mark McGowan is used to being popular. He smashed it at the March election, consigning the Liberals to four more years in Opposition. But treasurers usually deliver some bad news on Budget day

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Joe SpagnoloCommentsPremium
opinion
Time to properly educate Aussies about COVID jab

I am ashamed to admit that I am one of millions of Australians who could be immunised against COVID-19 — but hasn’t. And the Federal and State governments need to shoulder some of the blame.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Lest we forgetCommentsPremium
opinion
Anzacs helped give my father the freedoms he loved

Today, on ANZAC Day, I remember a wonderful man who jumped on a boat in search of work – and found much more.

Joe Spagnolo

opinion
opinion
Virus barrierCommentsPremium
opinion
Hard Border policy will stay as jab program splutters

Thirteen months after Australia saw its first coronavirus death, a Hard Border remains the government’s Number 1 strategy to stop the virus coming from over the Nullarbor. Here’s why.

Joe Spagnolo