On Friday, October 1, New South Wales’ long-serving Premier Gladys Berejiklian resigned from her role due to an Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) investigation into whether the 51-year-old breached public trust between 2012 and 2018.
The announcement shocked many, especially given the significant role she’s played throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. But as the dust settles, there’s one question on everyone’s minds: Who will replace her?
With a major deal having now been secured, we have a name to answer that: Dominic Perrottet.
Per the ABC, Dominic (also known as Dom), will likely be formally announced as the 46th Premier of NSW on Tuesday after an official party vote. His new deputy is understood to be Minister for Western Sydney Stuart Ayres, while the state’s Treasurer will be Environment Minister Matt Kean.
Now that we’re across who is likely to lead the next New South Wales’ state government, we delved a little deeper to find out who exactly Dom Perrottet is.
Here, everything you need to know about him—from his family life to his most talked-about decisions.
Who is Dominic Perrottet?
Perrottet is a 39-year-old father of six. He has a wife named Helen and is a devout Catholic.
Last year, he commented on his religion, saying it is, “Part of who I am and inspires me to make a difference wherever I go.”
He graduated from Sydney University with degrees in commerce and law and worked as a solicitor. He joined the state parliament in 2011 after winning the Liberal seat of Castle Hill.
He later became the Treasurer of the NSW Liberal Party, and became the deputy leader in 2017.
Per the ABC, he is part of the Liberal’s far right faction—for context, Berejiklian was moderate.
What has Dominic Perrottet said or done in government previously
There are several significant things to note about Perrottet’s previous moves within Government.
Firstly, in 2019 he voted against decriminalising abortion. The bill allowed women to have a termination at 22 weeks on request.
At the time, he said of the new legislation: “Gladys Berejiklian and I agree on most things. On this issue we agree to disagree.”
In his original speech when he joined parliament, he also set out his key ideals which were his main drivers in leadership: Sacrifice, generosity, freedom and opportunity.
“I believe in freedom, because it is only by exercising freedom that individuals can develop the habits of generosity, hard work, fairness and concern for others,” he said in his inaugural speech.
In 2016, Perrottet posted his thoughts to Facebook on the election of Donald Trump as US president. In the post, he wrote: “If you stand for free speech, you are not a bigot. If you question man-made climate change, you are not a sceptic. If you support stronger borders, you are not a racist. If you want a plebiscite on same sex marriage, you are not a homophobe. If you love your country, you are not an extremist.
He ended: “These are mainstream values that people should be free to articulate without fear of ridicule or persecution by the Left. It’s time for a new political conversation that reflects the concerns of everyday people. It’s time for a conservative spring.”
Other key movements from Perrottet include his involvement in the JobSaver program—when JobKeeper benefits were wiped by the federal government, he pushed back just as the 2021 Delta outbreak began to spread across the state.
He was also one of the key people behind the rollout of icare, a $38 billion state-run insurance scheme. Aimed at helping millions of working citizens who got sick or injured while working their jobs, it emerged that the agency had lost more than $3 billion (per ABC). It was set up by Perrottet in 2015.
What was Dominic Perrottet’s role in the COVID-19 response?
Perrottet has been a key figure in the major decision-making regarding New South Wales’ COVID-19 response. He has been part of the NSW crisis cabinet, and is particularly committed to boosting the state’s employment rate in the wake of the pandemic.
At this stage, he has suggested the reopening of the state is set to go ahead per Berejiklian’s roadmap.
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