Minns cycles on as NSW Liberal campaign gets wobbles

Luke Costin and Farid Farid | February 17, 2023

A morning cycle with school children soon turned into a bumpy Friday for NSW Labor leader Chris Minns as a star election candidate withdrew.

But the biggest potholes were on Premier Dominic Perrottet’s path as self-induced scandals led to a minister’s mea culpa and subsequent resignation and another MP moving to the political wilderness.

Finance minister Damien Tudehope quit his portfolio after revealing he’d owned shares in the state’s major toll road owner, Transurban, throughout his eight-year parliamentary career.

Mr Perrottet said he accepted the party powerbroker’s notice despite there being no evidence he’d stepped beyond the ministerial code of conduct and would take on the finance and employee relations ministries himself.

An emotional Mr Tudehope earlier in the day said he’d not been aware the shares were part of his diversified superannuation fund and although a profit had been made, he’d assured the premier he would donate it to charity.

He also denied the oversight had influenced any decision surrounding WestConnex or other Transurban infrastructure.

However, Mr Tudehope later issued a statement saying “during the course of the day I have had the opportunity to consider my position and I value my own integrity and the integrity of the government to be something that is not the subject of repeated political attacks”.

Mr Perrottet said Mr Tudehope had been “an incredibly upright man”.

Transurban, which operates most of Sydney’s toll roads, reported record half-year earnings of $1.66 billion recently, having collected $835 million in tolls from Sydney drivers in six months.

Meanwhile, under-siege Peter Poulos resigned from his parliamentary secretary role days after apologising for sharing 1980s Penthouse images of a female rival during a preselection battle five years ago.

The woman, who has since become an MP, accepted his apology and said she wanted to move on. 

But senior Liberals had faced an internal and public furore over the perceived lack of punishment.

Mr Poulos remains on the upper house ticket.

The mess took the attention off Labor’s hiccup: the withdrawal of former Canberra Raiders captain Terry Campese from the race for John Barilaro’s old seat.

Mr Campese was an outside chance of taking the southern NSW seat, held by the former Nationals leader from 2011 to 2021.

But he’s faced weeks of media attention, including over a scandalous party and how he came to be selected as a candidate.

“I have come to realise that, for some, politics is not about representing people but about their own power with a ‘win-at-all-costs’ mentality,” he said.

“(I will stand down) not because my heart isn’t in it but because I love this community too much to drag it through the media – whether they are truthful or not.”

Labor enjoyed a 6.4-per-cent swing at a 2022 by-election caused by Mr Barilaro’s retirement. 

Replicating that on March 25 would take the seat out of the Nationals’ hands but the party now faces a rush to find another representative.

While promising $40 million for more footpaths and bike tracks if elected, Mr Minns said Mr Campese’s decision was ultimately disappointing.

Labor had started the day by attacking the five-fold increase in high-paid executives in government departments and corporations.

“Twelve years of this government has created a surplus of top bureaucrats and a deficit of essential workers,” it said.

Meanwhile, the Greens on Friday unveiled an election policy to give 16- and 17-year-olds the vote from 2024.

Party spokeswoman Abigail Boyd said global evidence was unequivocal that enfranchising young people brought a range of benefits, including increased political participation and trust in democracy.