You know the one - happy to be in the round and have drinks bought for him, but when it's his shout it's, "I've got to go, sorry" before making a lame excuse and a hasty retreat.

Australia's eastern states have a friend just like that, called Western Australia.

For at least five years, the mining boom out west delivered huge windfalls to the Australian economy and helped keep the rest of the country out of recession.

But it also meant the value of the Australian dollar was stubbornly high, hastening the demise in the forestry and manufacturing sectors and seriously harming export-driven parts of the Tasmanian economy.

For the first part of the boom, WA continued to receive more GST than it contributed, as it takes about three years for the calculations, called "relativities", to catch up with reality.

And when they caught up, boy did we hear about it.

In a routine that is now getting a little tired, Premier Colin Barnett threatened all manner of consequences for the rest of us, short of seceding or posting armed troops on his Eastern border.

The tantrum also included throwing sledges like "mendicant" at Tasmania, forgetting the financial help that the rest of Australia had sent west for more than a century.

Now the nation has another GST stand-off, with Mr Barnett yet again promising to take his bat and ball and go home after the independent umpire recommended WA get less than 30 cents for every dollar it contributes.

In short, it's WA's shout and Mr Barnett won't pick up the tab.

The other seven states and territories, including the others who give more than they get, have accepted the ruling, so you'd think it'd be a short conversation in Canberra today - one that ends in, "Don't like it? Secede."

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has been guilty of talking out of both sides of his mouth on the GST, but more recently has taken a publicly sympathetic view to WA's plight, and a "deal" to appease Mr Barnett at the expense of the rest of the country is possible.

Internally and externally, Mr Abbott has plenty to lose if Mr Barnett opens up a Western Front.

It was WA's Dennis Jensen who was first out of the gate ahead of the leadership challenge in February.

One of Mr Abbott's main rivals for the top job, Julie Bishop, also comes from Perth.

And in blunt terms, the Liberals hold 12 out of Western Australia's 15 House of Representatives seats, a number that can only realistically head south.

Given that the government lacks the sales ability and courage to advocate an increase in the GST's rate or a broadening of the tax's base, Mr Abbott's moves are limited.

His best play is to send a few extra shekels West when next month's budget rolls around, and to hope that the relativities start delivering better returns for WA.

In any case, the almost annual fight between premiers over the GST carve-up is unseemly unhelpful, and starting to get tiresome, so some leadership from the federal government wouldn't go astray.

Perhaps Mr Abbott could ask Mr Barnett to stop hiding at the back of the bar.