Just before the election announcement last week, Agriculture Minister Kim Chance opened the construction tender for the new Muchea saleyards.

While the news was welcomed by industry, there were still concerns over future investment in other regional yards.

After lengthy delays to the Muchea project, some pundits were doubting whether work on the yards would ever start.

Industry members also wanted any funds from the sale of the Midland saleyards to be injected directly into the infrastructure of the state's ailing livestock markets, a request fuelled by an underlying suspicion that the money has been earmarked by Treasury for other purposes.

Mr Chance said he was relieved to be able to finally get Muchea moving.

"There has obviously been a lengthy delay," he said.

"I initially expected to call for tenders back in May this year but there was some due process that we had to go through to get to this point."

Part of the reason for the delay was a request from Treasury for a cost benefit analysis on relocating Midland's operations to Muchea.

A consultant was employed and the benefit was determined to be about $467 million over 20 years.

This was compared to keeping the saleyards in Midland and not having any yards.

"Investing such a substantial sum of the public's money needs to follow due process," Mr Chance said.

"There were a whole range of issues that the Government had to satisfy itself with in regard to that cost benefit for the state."

WAFarmers said the Government now must outline a strategy for regional saleyards.

WAFarmers president Mike Norton said the aged saleyards now in use pose a threat to the health and safety of communities, workers and animals, so the decision by Mr Chance to progress the tender for Muchea was welcomed.

"As outlined in a strategy put to the State Government earlier this year, we now need a clear commitment regarding the construction of a new livestock precinct in the South West, reconstruction of the Katanning saleyard and the purchase of the Mt Barker facility," Mr Norton said.

Pastoralists and Graziers Association (PGA) president Rob Gillam said the next state government must ensure that there is no further stalling at Muchea and that funding for the upgrade of Katanning and the purchase of Mt Barker saleyard now proceeds.