WA election 2025: Anthony Albanese’s live export ban killing Labor’s chances of holding Albany seat

Anthony Albanese’s live export ban has cruelled WA Labor’s chances of holding the regional seat of Albany, insiders fear, as the election race heats up for the Great Southern seat. Concerns about Labor’s ability to win Albany resulted in an early year push from half a dozen senior Government ministers, including Premier Roger Cook, making mercy dashes to shore up the seat. But voter anger at Federal Labor’s decision to end the live sheep export trade by 2028 is understood to be palpable in the regional city. One senior Labor source told The West Australian the issue was causing headaches for the State Government in the electorate. “Albany will be hard to win. It is the only electorate in WA where the ban on live sheep exports is putting us at risk,” they said. The seat, currently held by the Government on an 11 per cent margin, has been in Labor hands since 2001, with former MP Peter Watson winning five terms there. After his retirement at the last election, Labor tapped then-Albany councillor Rebecca Stephens to run, and she is now seeking a second term on March 8. But the Government has become increasingly concerned over Ms Stephens’ chances for political survival, after a boundary redraw, combined with Federal Labor’s export changes. Under the reforms, live sheep export will be ended in Australia by 2028, a move slammed by farmers across the State as the Prime Minister targets inner city votes, rather than more broadly in WA. Pressure has mounted on Mr Cook, who opposed the changes, to push back against Federal Labor, with the Western Australian Livestock Exporters Association writing to the Premier last week to fight to reverse the ban. “Good governments do not shut down industries that support regional businesses and communities for political purposes,” WALEA chair John Cunnington wrote. “Premier, we are urging you to stand up once again for WA and demand your Federal colleagues to reverse this unjust ban. It is clear it will be an election issue in WA as West Australians support their farmers and do not like them being mistreated.” Last year, after the Prime Minister was caught up in a furore from farmers over a clumsy joke at an agricultural dinner, seemingly mocking the live sheep industry, Ms Stephens took to social media and called on Mr Albanese to apologise. “The Prime Minister’s attempt to make light of his decision to end the live sheep export industry is extremely disappointing,” Ms Stephens wrote. “Members of my community in Albany and the Great Southern deserve an apology. “This is not a time to be making jokes.” A Newspoll published last week showed the seat would be swept up in a 12 per cent swing towards the Liberal Party. While the poll predicted WA Labor would still be comfortably re-elected for an historic third term, voters had turned on Mr Albanese, with half believing his time as Prime Minister should come to an end. Asked on Thursday about the impact of Federal Labor’s policies — including live export — on the State election, Liberal leader Libby Mettam said voters believed the Premier had pandered to the Prime Minister. “We’ve seen that Roger Cook has failed to stand up for WA when it has come to the live export ban, which has overwhelmingly hurt Western Australian farmers,” she said. “While there has been a pause on Nature Positive there are very real concerns that that could well come back after the next election “There is very real concern that under Roger Cook’s weak leadership we have a premier who has failed to stand up to Anthony Albanese.”