Devout Catholic father-of-six Dom Perrottet ‘is CONFIRMED’ as Gladys Berejiklian’s replacement as NSW premier – here’s his likely deputy and the new treasurer
Dominic Perrottet looks set to be NSW Premier after a key ally switched sides when an endorsement by ex-PM John Howard gave the Treasurer an unbeatable edge.
A formal handover of power could be announced as soon as Sunday evening.
The right-wing Treasurer had already secured the support of many Liberal moderates by selecting environment minister Matt Kean, 40, as his running mate.
Mr Kean is now said to be set to take over the Treasurer’s job while one-time potential rival, tourism minister Stuart Ayres, 40, has now joined Mr Perrottet’s campaign as his deputy.
Dominic Perrottet (pictured) is set to be NSW Premier after a key ally switched sides when an endorsement by ex-PM John Howard gave the current Treasurer an unbeatable edge
The party’s centre-right have also swung behind the 39-year-old dad-of-six after Mr Howard’s seal of approval.
Planning minister Rob Stokes was the only other contender to formally put their hand up for the Premier’s job, but he was relying on numbers from the centre-right.
However that faction, led by police minister David Elliot, is now said to have switched allegiances after the nod from Mr Howard, effectIvely gifting power to Mr Perrottet.
With the additional numbers from Mr Ayres’s support, Mr Perrottet’s lead is now looking insurmountable and may not even go to a vote in the party room on Tuesday.
The party’s centre-right have also swung behind dad-of-six Dominic Perrottet, pictured here with his family, after Mr Howard’s seal of approval
The tide rose behind Mr Perrottet on Saturday afternoon when Mr Howard put the good word on his bid for the top NSW job.
The endorsement came just 24 hours after Gladys Berejiklian, 51, announced she was quitting over the ICAC probe into her relationship and dealings with dodgy MP Daryl Maguire.
‘A number of talented MPs have been suggested as her replacement [but] I hope that Dominic Perrottet becomes the new Liberal leader, and therefore the next premier of NSW,’ Mr Howard said in a statement.
‘He has the intelligence, experience and commitment to reform that the state needs at this time.’
At 39, Mr Perrottet would be the youngest leader in the history of Australia’s most populated state, making him a year younger than Nick Greiner, Nathan Rees and Kristina Keneally when they rose to power.
He would also be Australia’s youngest state premier since Labor’s Lara Giddings governed Tasmania aged 38 in January 2011.
Mr Perrottet, who became Treasurer in January 2017 when Ms Berejiklian replaced Mike Baird as Premier, is also a devout Catholic and hails from the Liberal Party’s Right faction.
At 1pm, Ms Berejiklian announced she would become the third Liberal premier in NSW to be brought down by the anti-corruption body her side of politics created more than three decades ago.
Less than two hours later Mr Perrottet, the NSW Liberal Party’s deputy leader, issued a statement paying tribute to his outgoing boss and confirmed he was considering a tilt at the top job.
‘Today is an incredibly sad day for NSW,’ he said on Friday.
‘I would like to offer my gratitude and thanks to Gladys Berejiklian for the leadership and strength she has shown throughout her career and especially during one of the most challenging periods any leader could ever encounter.’
He said reopening the economy was a priority as he considered running for the Liberal leadership, which in NSW has traditionally been held by moderates instead of social conservatives.
‘Over the coming days I will be talking to my family and colleagues about how I can best serve the people of NSW to continue to achieve these aims,’ he said.
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