The West Live: Federal Finance Minister Mathias Cormann claims WA won’t be off table at National Cabinet

WA Liberal senator Mathias Cormann will join The West Live today to discuss why the Federal Government wants fortress WA to reopen and to create a national definition of a COVID-19 hotspot.

Australia’s longest-serving Finance Minister will join The West Live this morning ahead of a National Cabinet meeting to discuss State border closures and the definition of COVID-19 hotspots.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison is expected to fight to re-open borders at the conference.

Mr Cormann has previously spoken out about the reopening of his home state, claiming WA Premier Mark McGowan’s border decision was politically driven.

The West Australian yesterday revealed Mr McGowan’s already sky-high approval rating had improved from 87 per cent in June to 91 per cent this month, while 92 per cent of sandgropers polled supported his border stance.

While Mr Cormann claims WA’s borders are not going to be left out of the discussion, The West Australian understands the PM will todaySEP4 back Mr McGowan’s decision to keep the State closed to the east.

But it’s expected he will press Queensland to reopen because of the impact on communities living along the border with NSW.

Sunrise Perth correspondent Matt Tinney will also feature on the podcast to bring us the latest news headlines.

After 9.15am, The West Australian’s Ben O’Shea will return to share some quirky stories from across the State in his Wild West segment.

For all that and more, tune in here from 8.45AM.