After 12 years in the wilderness, NSW Labor leader Chris Minns thinks the timing is finally right to seize power in the state.
Privately, his colleagues say there was no doubt he would end up as leader even if his brashness, his willingness to declare things should be done differently, put noses out of joint during his first years in parliament.
He has attempted to frame the Opposition as an assiduous and consistent alternative to government – and a party that doesn’t hesitate to step away from the unions. Some critics take aim at what they call an uninspiring platform devoid of vision. Others question whether Labor’s frontbench has the strength to steer a $115 billion infrastructure pipeline at a time when the state’s deficit is set to reach more than $11 billion this financial year.
“I don’t know … I’m just being honest. I can’t trace it straight back to some seminal event in my life. I just feel like if there’s a problem, we should try and fix it.” Other policies include a staunch anti-privatisation agenda, after years of Coalition asset recycling which Minns claims has saddled consumers with higher tolls and higher energy prices. An anti-privatisation agenda and persistent energy pricing woes has also prompted Minns to announce a revival of a state-owned energy security corporation, with an initial outlay of $1 billion in funding.
Minns is also aware of a historic pattern in which a recent state party victory will lengthen the odds of a federal party being re-elected, which means that some federal Labor MPs are hopeful the state party comes up short on election day.
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