Matt Kean: Dominic Perrottet has the ability to lead NSW out of the pandemic
Everyone is sad to see Gladys Berejiklian go but the new leadership team of Dominic Perrottet and Stuart Ayres is putting its best foot forward, writes Matt Kean.
Opinion
Don't miss out on the headlines from Opinion. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Last week Australia lost its greatest leader. Gladys Berejiklian kept NSW strong as we battled the coronavirus pandemic.
The outpouring of support she has received over the past few days is testament to her diligence and grace that will not be forgotten.
However, in our new leadership team, led by Dominic Perrottet and Stuart Ayres, the Liberal Party is bringing its very best to bear.
Our team values a strong economy, freedom, opportunity for everyone and science and evidence-based decision making.
We have representatives from across the city, the western suburbs and the bush, coming together at the same table to govern for the whole community.
A lot has been written about my role over the past few days.
My focus during that time has always been on delivering a strong, stable and unified government for the people of NSW.
I have known Dom Perrottet for nearly 20 years and I believe he has the right experience to steer the state out of Covid.
I am proud that Dom and Stuart, two people who sat on the crisis subcommittee of Cabinet which has guided us through this pandemic so far, are going to lead us in writing the next chapter for NSW.
Our state is going through difficult times. But we are weathering this better than anywhere else on the planet. We are doing that because we have trusted the science and the evidence and made huge personal sacrifices to keep our friends and families safe and in work.
Back in 2020, when the pandemic first hit our shores, we heeded the health advice to stay at home, working together to avoid the worst scenes coming out of Europe and the US that beamed across the news each night.
As lockdowns loomed last Christmas, we got tested if we had the slightest of symptoms. Hundreds of thousands of people in NSW went through the swab and isolate routine to bring the second outbreak under control, keeping our friends and family safe and the economy open. As the Delta variant surged over the past few months, we again put the health of our community first, with thousands rolling up their sleeves each day to do their bit to keep others safe. Nearing 90 per cent first doses, NSW is now on track to have one of the highest vaccination rates anywhere in the world.
We should be very proud of everything we have accomplished together over the past 18 months. Each case we avoided is testament to the sacrifices we all made by staying apart, when all we wanted to do was to be together.
No one has made more sacrifices to protect our country than the people of Western Sydney. Western Sydney is normally the vibrant, engine room of our economy. During the Delta outbreak, it was the hardest hit.
But the sacrifices that community has made has given Australia the time to get vaccinated.
Every generation of Australians has faced great tests – Gallipoli, the Great Depression, the Second World War, Vietnam, the Cold War, 9/11.
Our generation is meeting the challenge of our time by showing the very best of our country – the can-do pragmatism of our farmers; the sacrifice for the common good that the ANZACs knew only too well; a trust in science, evidence and the creativity of our best minds.
The pandemic has also reminded us to value what matters most.
To value each moment we share with our loved ones, whether it be over zoom or around the dinner table.
To value our local bakeries, butchers and grocers that put food on the table with a smile each day.
To value our health, and the doctors and nurses who risk their lives to safeguard ours.
To value our natural environment and public open spaces, which provided a daily breath of fresh air for couped up families.
To value the freedom we all miss and enjoy.
If these are the things that we rely on and value when the going gets tough, then these are the things we must invest in as the grass gets greener.
Make no mistake, this is not over. We have more work to do – we need to keep getting vaccinated, keep following the public health measures and get our economy going again, by opening businesses and getting our children back in school.
But if NSW brings to the future what we have brought to this pandemic, we have every reason to believe we can build a more prosperous state, create more opportunities for our people and leave a better planet for our children.
We have every reason to believe that we can tackle the other great challenges of our time – ensuring that every woman has the same opportunities as every man and ensuring that we halve the state’s emissions and get to net zero by 2050 while growing our economy.
We have every reason to believe we can come back stronger.
Matt Kean is currently the NSW Treasurer
Join the conversation
‘Enough is enough’ Albo, make this the year of energy security
We must declare 2025 the ‘Year of Energy Security’, where we abandon half-measures and a blinkered approach and lay out a comprehensive plan to lock in affordable, reliable electricity for decades, writes, Stephen Galilee.
Read more
Big Donald revels in the art of the impossible
It turns out that lots of stupid leftist problems can be very rapidly set straight, or at least be pointed in that direction, even if they’re stupid leftist problems that have been hanging around for years.
Read more