NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet: ‘I look after NSW but my wife pulls the purse strings at home’
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet is responsible for an $80 billion budget that has the power to dramatically affect families right across NSW. But, at home, it’s his wife Helen who tells him when it’s time to tighten the belt.
NSW
Don't miss out on the headlines from NSW. Followed categories will be added to My News.
HE’S the man responsible for an $80 billion budget that has the power to dramatically affect families right across NSW.
But, at home, his wife tells him when it’s time to tighten the belt or loosen the purse strings.
“Helen is the minister for home affairs,” NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet told The Sunday Telegraph.
“This is her domain.”
Mrs Perrottet, an Army Reserves lawyer and captain and studying a masters degree in her spare time, has total control over household spending and some sort of control over their five children, aged from eight to eight-months-old.
“I want to maximise the time that Dom has to spend with the kids when he’s home,” the 38-year-old said.
“If he’s at home, instead of him jumping online and paying the Telstra bill or whatever, I’d rather him read a book to the kids.”
In nine days, Mr Perrottet — touted as a future premier — will deliver his second NSW budget.
It’s his biggest day of the year, involving months of planning and endless hours balancing the books.
Meanwhile Mrs Perrottet keeps their four-bedroom suburban home in northwest Sydney running smoothly, ferrying the kids around in an eight-seater people mover.
“My washing is ridiculous,” she said.
Mrs Perrottet said her husband pitches in when he walks through the front door.
“I don’t know how he works all day and then he comes home and he just wants to crash out on the couch and it’s like nappies and bottles and put the kids to bed. That would be exhausting for him.”
Mr Perrottet, who met his wife when he gatecrashed her 21st birthday party, said: “We’re no different to a lot of families that are struggling and have to balance work and family life.
“Rushing kids off to sport, having the work pressures and come home and leave the work at the door and be as present as you can be and turn the phone off — it’s a constant struggle.
“I wouldn’t say in any way that I’ve perfected it and nor would Helen.”
A day in the Perrottet household normally starts with the “pitter patter” of feet into their bedroom.
The first of their five children — Charlotte, 8, Amelia, 6, Annabelle, 4, William, 2 and Harriet, eight-months-old — are normally awake by 6am.
“We actually have a bed in our room for kids who want to come in,” Mrs Perrottet said.
“Sometimes Dom might be moved into there. It’s musical beds some nights.”
The chaos of big families are the norm for Mr and Mrs Perrottet. He’s one of 12 children and she’s one of eight.
Despite the daily demands, the married couple of 10 years make the time for date night each week.
“From the office perspective, that’s just locked and loaded like any other appointment,” Mr Perrottet, a devout Catholic, said.
“That sounds weird in the sense that you have to diarise your family time, but it’s just the reality.
“We just go to a restaurant, sit down, have dinner and tell all the weird and wonderful stories of the day which is always something entertaining that’s happening in my job.”
A move to Canberra and federal politics could also be on the cards for the Member for Hawkesbury — just not right now.
“Obviously it’s a lot easier balancing work and family life when I get to come home most nights,” Mr Perrottet, 35, said.
“Thoughts like that don’t really come into it when you know that you’re in the middle of a job that needs another, at least, five years to finish.”
And a lot can change in five years including a possible expansion of the Perrottet clan.
“I’m 38, there’s not much room for more kids but more wouldn’t make a huge amount of difference,” Mrs Perrottet said.
“It’s become, in a sense, easier each time because you know all the shortcuts and then they also start playing together more.”
Mr Perrottet said he didn’t know “anybody who says they wish they had less kids”.
But he added: “Our hands are pretty full.”