New South Wales premier designate Chris Minns says he plans to pick the brain of his predecessor Dominic Perrottet as he settles in to the top job, admitting “there’s things to learn”.
He admitted he still hadn’t become accustomed to being addressed as “premier”.
“Someone called me that yesterday and I had to turn around and see if there was somebody behind me,” he said.
But he said he expected to get to work straight away, as well as get some guidance on what it’s like in the big chair from Perrottet.
“I’m looking forward to catching up with him soon just about his experiences in government,” Minns said.
“We’d be crazy to not take his expertise and his experience on board.”
The new premier’s priorities centre around worker retention in health and education, including removing the wage cap for essential workers.
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He will also start talks to include Sydney Water in the state constitution, ensuring a roadblock in case a future government tries to sell the publicly-owned asset.
He confirmed again his campaign pledge to stop the advance of privatisation of state assets in NSW.
“I know there’s going to be scrutiny on government decisions and there’s going to be a big job ahead of us,” he said.
But he said he hoped to keep to the same civility that marked the campaign, and limit fights to issues rather than personalities.
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“Even when we were in opposition I don’t think we were super political, and that’s not going to change in government,” he said.
“I think the next election … will be decided on the results over the next four years.”
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