Premier Roger Cook open to changing date of WA Day public holiday

WA Premier Roger Cook is leaving the door open to permanently move the Western Australia Day public holiday closer to summer. The day is normally celebrated with a festival in the first week of June. Bad weather saw the festival cancelled in June and moved forward to Sunday, November 24, at Burswood, where Australia and India are also playing in the first cricket Test at Optus Stadium. “I think it makes sense to explore how we might better align the date of the WA Day public holiday, particularly to coincide with our warmer months around summer,” Mr Cook said on Saturday. “I am open to reviewing the date of the public holiday in the future, as part of broader reforms that look at maximising any economic benefits. But my main focus is ensuring this year’s festival delivers a celebration that is worthy of our great State and the people who make it great.” The June 3 WA Day Festival was abandoned after storms left Burswood Park waterlogged. But the State Government says Sunday’s festival will be worth the five-month wait, where there will be free carnival rides and free music from iconic local bands Eskimo Joe and San Cisco, as well as Great Gable, Noah Dillon, Angie Colman and Maatakitj. There will also be 500 drones showcasing images and activities around the State. “The rescheduled WA Day Festival is a fantastic, free family event for every Western Australian — an opportunity to come together and celebrate what it means to live in Western Australia,” Mr Cook said. “When storms forced the June festival to be cancelled, we acted quickly to ensure Western Australians would still have a major celebration event in 2024 and that is exactly what we are delivering with Celebrate WA. And it looks like this time the weather gods have got the message. “I’m proud my Government has backed this event. Celebrate WA has done a great job, working with everyone to pull this event off. “We’re a major sponsor of the WA Day Festival but we’ve also supported The West Test as well as the Indian cultural festival, which will see the Perth Stadium Precinct and Burswood Park bursting with activity.”