Labor has already hurled billions at WA’s spot fires. What’s left in the budget?

Pick the political thorn in the side of the Cook government, and West Australian Treasurer Rita Saffioti has already fired the money cannon at it.

Housing crisis? More than $2.5 billion in state and federal money was announced on the weekend to help build an estimated 34,000 homes. Tick.

Hospital crisis? Another $1.5 billion to an already ballooning hospital and maintenance fund. Tick.

School roofs falling in? Another $2.1 billion for major upgrades across the education system as well as new schools for the state’s fastest-growing communities. Tick.

Since February, there have been more than $12 billion in pre-budget announcements, taking much of the mystery out of Saffioti’s plans.

But there will still be some gunpowder in the cannon to make a loud bang on budget day.

To date, there have been some underwhelming responses to big issues facing the state, which leaves room for a few surprises in Thursday’s budget.

Given the continued pressure on households, from increased interest rates to the Iran war oil shock, cost of living has not yet been addressed satisfactorily.

In a state as wealthy as WA, the public has become used to broad-scale cost-of-living supports like energy bill credits and school assistance payments.

And with a government not afraid to stoke inflation with handouts, it would be a shock if there was nothing further in this year’s budget.

Given that much of the pain in the pocket relates to car travel, the state might look at following Victoria’s lead and offer a discount on car registration.

The other persistent headache for the Cook government is WA’s overcrowded prison system.

With recent confirmation from Corrective Services Minister Paul Papalia that they were considering the empty Bullsbrook quarantine centre as a potential new prison there could be some money for planning or feasibility studies in today’s budget papers.

One thing is for certain in this budget, and it is that the state’s economic fortunes remained tightly intertwined with the success of the iron ore sector.

Once again, WA’s iron ore royalty assumptions have been wildly conservative, making recurrent revenue and expenditure forecasts redundant by the time the next shipment disappears over the horizon from the Pilbara.

It does mean Saffioti will have some extra dosh to play around with, and with the extra money announced to date it seems she has found a home for every dollar.

Had the Australian dollar stuck around its forecasted US65 cents, iron ore royalties would be up about $650 million compared to the December forecast, but that will likely have been eroded by between $200 million to $300 million.

A stubbornly hot housing market will also add extra revenue to the state’s coffers.

Nine years into the Labor government and this might be as good as it gets for Saffioti.

She’s three years from the next election, so any mistakes can be forgiven.

The GST deal is still locked in, and the iron ore price remains high while shipments keep flowing, but those economic headwinds that successive treasurers have been warned about for years might actually blow the state off course in the near future.