Subiaco’s new inner-city high school will be named after larrikin former prime minister Bob Hawke if Premier Mark McGowan gets his way.

The Premier has mounted a case for honouring the WA-raised Labor icon as part of community consultation for the new school which is scheduled to open next to the defunct Subiaco Oval in 2020.

Mr McGowan said Mr Hawke who was famous for skolling pints of beer in record time and has a city bar named in his honour, went to nearby Perth Modern School in the 1950s and had a close affinity with the area.

“As a kid, he walked the streets of Subiaco and Leederville,” the Premier said.

“He went to UWA, became a Rhodes Scholar and prime minister. He’s one of the most famous, successful West Australians ever. He’s a giant of Australian life.”

Camera Icon How the new school could look. Credit: WA Government

When construction began on the school, which was a compromise after the McGowan Government’s failed bid to relocate Perth Modern and use its buildings for a general high school, four possible names were discussed — Inner City College, Subiaco College, Subiaco Community College and Subiaco Secondary College.

But Mr McGowan said Mr Hawke’s name was a good fit and that other political leaders, including Sir John Forrest and Sir David Brand, had schools named after them.

“He is a great Aussie and in the twilight of his life,” Mr McGowan said.

“Honouring our great West Australians is a good thing, but let the people and families in the area have their say.”

Shadow education minister Donna Faragher said the Government needed to consider if naming the school after a Labor politician, rather than the suburb, would politicise the education system.