NSW Labor Leader Jodi McKay is calling on Deputy Premier John Barilaro to quit his post now that his boss, Premier Berejiklian, has slapped him down so publicly by rejecting his calls to stop rural and regional public sector job cuts.
The Deputy Premier has staked his job on his ability to stop 180 rural and regional jobs from being cut by the State Government-owned Essential Energy. As late as Friday night Mr Barilaro continued to hold out false hope that he could save them, knowing full well that he had failed.
Overnight in Europe Ms Berejiklian made it clear that she would not intervene, breaking a promise she made right after the State Budget that public sector jobs in rural and regional NSW are “protected”.
Both have now failed to deliver on that promise and Ms McKay said Mr Barilaro should now consider his position. On Friday it emerged that he had urged his Nationals colleagues to consider whether they should continue working with the Liberals in the NSW Coalition.
“This is the second time in as many months that John Barilaro has threatened to tear up the Coalition agreement in apparent exasperation that the Liberals won’t listen to him,” Ms McKay said.
“He is the boy who has cried wolf too many times. If he can’t deliver for rural and regional NSW then he has to ask himself – what is the point of him and the Nationals if they can’t even get their Liberal mates to pick up the phone and order Essential Energy to stop those cuts?”
“NSW is going through a terrible drought and the Liberals and Nationals think it is acceptable to allow 180 jobs to be cut from the bush. Ms Berejiklian and Mr Barilaro have betrayed rural and regional NSW.”
Ms McKay said that the tensions between the Premier and her Deputy Premier will divert the Liberal-National government’s attention from the issues that are plaguing the state such as the building industry crisis, water and regional jobs.
“It is hard to see how the Premier can continue to govern alongside a man whom she has so publicly betrayed. NSW needs good government but all we are getting is broken promises, disunity and posturing from a powerless Deputy Premier.”
