You could almost see Mark McGowan licking his lips on Monday morning when he arrived at the North Metropolitan TAFE campus at Clarkson ready to unload a serve at the woman who wants to take his job in 17 months.

The WA Premier had trekked to the northern edge of Perth's suburbs to announce that fees for 34 TAFE courses would be slashed by 50 per cent.

The Government argued the policy would address looming skill shortages in key industries and help struggling jobseekers find work by enhancing their qualifications.

But there is also another purpose — of which the Government is making no secret — targeting Liberal Leader Liza Harvey.

Liza Harvey as training minister was responsible for hiking TAFE fees. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

"The former government and Liza Harvey put fees up by 500 per cent," Mr McGowan said.

"That drove people out of the training sector and we are righting that wrong today."

Targeting Harvey where it hurts most

Ms Harvey was training minister when the Barnett government dramatically drove up TAFE fees in its second term, a situation Labor believed would be problematic for the Liberal leader heading into the next state election campaign.

"Liza is very vulnerable on this one," one Labor strategist said this week.

"We are going to be talking about this a lot over the next year."

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And that strategy was clearly evident in State Parliament this week, when Labor MPs mentioned the word "TAFE" during Question Time 46 times in just three days.

The Government is also circulating a digital advertisement stating "Liza's Liberals just don't care about TAFE", which quotes Ms Harvey's explanation for the fee increases.

"We had a glide path to increase TAFE fees to have them be more cost reflective," Ms Harvey is heard saying in the ad.

Labor certainly thinks it has the potential to cause Ms Harvey's election prospects serious damage by targeting her on TAFE.

But that same policy is also the Government's latest effort to protect itself from what some critics see as its biggest vulnerability.

'Disturbing' jobless figures just won't come down

Elected two-and-a-half years ago on a platform of putting "WA jobs first" and addressing the state's unemployment woes, the jobless rate is proving difficult for the Government to move amid a largely stagnant economy.

The 5.7 per cent unemployment rate is better than when the Government came to office, with the workforce having grown by 48,000 people since then.

But it is still at a level Mr McGowan described as "disturbing" and an "indictment" on the then Barnett government during Labor's years in opposition, with 80,000 West Australians looking for work.

The Government hopes the fee cuts will help address skills shortages in key industries. ( ABC News: Elicia Kennedy )

The problems go beyond an unemployment rate higher than the national average.

Business investment plummeted last year, WA's domestic economy shrunk and the median house price fell by 2.5 per cent, a situation Liberals believe they can exploit politically.

"You have had three budgets to stimulate the WA economy, grow jobs and turn around the housing market, Premier," frontbench Liberal Sean L'Estrange posted on social media.

"You need more than an Ellenbrook train line in your kit bag."

Spending priorities start to shift ahead of poll

After spending years seeking to put a lid on Government spending, Labor has signalled a shift in its priorities in recent weeks, promising hundreds of millions of dollars for initiatives designed to stimulate the economy.

That started with major packages for school and hospital maintenance, with the TAFE fee move the latest decision the Government argues will help to get WA's economy back on track.

Government MPs mentioned the word TAFE 46 times during three days of Question Time. ( ABC News: Jonathan Beal )

And Mr McGowan has indicated there will be more to come, with predicted multi-billion-dollar surpluses in the coming years giving the Government a big war chest to spend to boost its re-election prospects and stimulate the economy.

"[The budget position] allows us to do targeted initiatives to create jobs," Mr McGowan said this week.

Labor is unlikely to let up on its attack of Ms Harvey over TAFE fees any time soon, hoping to make her record as training minister a significant issue in the 2021 election campaign.

But with time running out to demonstrate it has delivered on its promise to fix WA's economic and unemployment woes before polling day, the McGowan Government is appearing increasingly mindful of its own vulnerabilities and the impact they could have on voters' decisions in 17 months.