A debating point could be that the Federal Government accumulated a surplus during boom times to provide a slush fund for future pre-election pork barrelling. What they didnt countenance was the drubbing given to them by the electorate who really wanted the hospitals and education systems fixed and while it can be said they are State responsibilities it is the lack of sufficient funding that causes the problems and the Feds could have done more. Similarly in WA it was boom times and the State Government chose to maintain a substantial surplus and like the Feds paid the price for not fixing health and education along with a range of other concerns.
