Dominic Perrottet wanted Ray Williams’ Castle Hill seat to work closer to home
UNDER-siege Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has explained what had sparked his decision after he faced party room backlash over his aborted bid to take his ministerial colleague Ray Williams’s lower house seat of Castle Hill in Sydney’s north west.
NSW
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UNDER-siege Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has declared he is “no different” to any father trying to balance work and family life and that society should talk more about these battles as he explained his failed seat coup that has rocked the government.
As Premier Gladys Berejiklian tried desperately to get her at-war government back on track, Mr Perrottet faced party room backlash over his aborted bid to take his ministerial colleague Ray Williams’s lower house seat of Castle Hill so he could work nearer his Epping home.
He told The Daily Telegraph his issues were ones faced by all working dads and were worthy of discussion: “We should have a conversation about it because in modern times … we all have our own challenges.”
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Mr Perrottet apologised to his colleagues in the closed-door meeting yesterday, but privately ministers and MPs believe the factional instability sparked by his power play will wreak havoc in the run up to next year’s election.
Mr Perrottet — who before last week’ uproar was seen as the next Liberal leader — admitted to The Daily Telegraph that the government had “been hurt” by his failed seat switch but it was “completely focused on the people of the state”.
He said “hindsight was great” but added he would always “put my family first”.
Father-of five Mr Perrottet had complained about his 40km commute to his electorate of Hawkesbury when he made a play for Mr Williams’s, sparking fury in his own government.
“I’m no different to any father out there with the challenges that come from balancing work and family life. It is tough,” he said.
“We want to be the best husbands and we want to be the best fathers, and it can be a challenge trying to combine those things. I understand that, I live that every day, I’m no different to everybody else. And we should have a conversation about it.”
Mr Perrottet said “being a good husband, being a good father to my five kids and having that work-life balance puts me in the position where I can do the best job I can as well”.
He faced party room criticism from Camden MP Chris Patterson who said he personally had a 70km trip. Nationals MP for Coffs Harbour Andrew Fraser told how he’d missed his daughter’s 21 birthday because being away from home was part of the job.
Others who spoke out about the public brawl included East Hills MP Glenn Brookes and Albury MP Greg Aplin.
Senior factional chiefs are trying to calm anger over the events.
Ms Berejiklian also apologised to the party room yesterday and said “the buck always stops with me”.
She told them the election was theirs to lose and urging them to “draw a line in the sand” after all the infighting.