But Mr Albanese has endorsed Mark McGowan's shock move, which threatens to cause major disruptions for campaigning in the battleground state ahead of the upcoming federal election.

The Morrison government steered clear of publicly criticising the Labor Premier on Friday, in what appeared a deliberate attempt to avoid a voter backlash in WA.

The WA Premier has abandoned plans to lift the state's border as scheduled on February 5, claiming it would be "irresponsible" and "reckless" given the prevalence of Omicron in other parts of the country.

Some approved travellers will be permitted to cross the border from that date, but are required to be triple-dose vaccinated and must quarantine for 14 days upon arrival.

Mr McGowan, who last March won a landslide state election on the back of his hugely popular hard border stance, had signalled a booster rate of beyond 80 per cent would be required before WA fully reopened to other states.

The state's third dose rate is about 26 per cent.

Mr McGowan on Friday clarified that the third dose rate would be a "relevant" but not "defining" factor in when the state reopened.

He could not even guarantee that the border would reopen this year, only that it would reopen "at some point in time" pending the results of a review.

The decision has been met with strong criticism from the Australian Medical Association's Perth-based president Omar Khorshid, who said it should been seen as a "broken promise" and concession that the WA government had failed to prepare.

Mr McGowan brushed off suggestions of broken promises, arguing that the February 5 reopening was always contingent on there not being "an emergency or catastrophe" unfolding at that point.

"What's going on in the eastern states is both an emergency and a catastrophe," he said.

Mr Albanese said he supported the Labor Premier's decision, adding Mr McGowan has "always made the right call based upon health advice".

The federal Opposition Leader claimed the move was made in "direct response" to the federal government's failure to secure more booster doses and home testing kits.

Mr Albanese was planning to travel to WA on February 5, with Labor hopeful of snatching as many as five seats from the Liberals in the state.

With the election now likely to be held in May, Mr Albanese and Mr Morrison are set to be barred from campaigning in WA in the crucial months before polling day.

Coalition ministers were critical of Labor premiers for keeping their state borders closed through the first two years of the pandemic.

But senior Liberals were largely muted in their criticism following Mr McGowan's late-night announcement, avoiding any direct attacks on the WA premier and lending their government's support to help the state reopen.

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Energy Minister Angus Taylor said people were entitled to ask "if not now, when" with regards to WA's border reopening, given the state's double-dose vaccination rate had almost reached 90 per cent.

"It will need to open up, just as the rest of Australia is doing so, and I can understand the frustration of Western Australians on this," he told ABC's RN Breakfast.

"But we will continue to support them to open up as the rest of the country is doing."

Defence Minister Peter Dutton echoed those comments on Channel 9's Today Show.

"WA's done a great job in getting up to a first dose rate of I think 94.7 per cent, as at this morning - so we want to see that increase - but understandably you can see the disappointment when you hear the West Australians speak, and they're asking, you know, what next? I mean how do they get through this?," he said.

The Canberra Times has asked the Prime Minister's office for a direct response to Mr Albanese's accusations, but is yet to receive a response.

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