Gladys Berejiklian back on the hustings

Former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian has emerged on the campaign trail for the first time in support of Penrith MP Stuart Ayres – but her successor has played down the prospects of her playing a greater role

Penrith MP Stuart Ayres, his wife, senator Marise Payne, and former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian in Penrith. Picture: Instagram

Former NSW premier Gladys Bere­jiklian has emerged on the campaign trail for the first time in support of Penrith MP Stuart Ayres – but her successor has played down the prospects of her playing a greater role.

Eight days before the state election, Ms Berejiklian has been a conspicuous absence from the campaign trail, failing to appear at the Liberal Party campaign launch last Saturday, before appearing in a selfie with Mr Ayres and his wife, senator Marise Payne, on Wednesday night.

In the photo uploaded to the MP’s public Instagram profile, Mr Ayres wrote: “Happy Inn always a good choice for a fun dinner”.

The picture appeared hours after Premier Dominic Perrottet said he did not believe Ms Berejiklian had been treated unfairly by the anti-corruption watchdog.

Mr Perrottet denied her non-attendance at the launch represented a snub, but poured cold water on the prospects of her appearing alongside him, saying while he would be open to having her out on the hustings, her role at Optus kept her “very busy”.

“It’s great to have Glad as part of the campaign. And you know, as I said yesterday, she was a great premier of NSW, and to see her campaigning in Penrith, I know, will make a real difference,” he said. “If I could have Glad out every day, I would.”

Mr Ayres has a wafer-thin hold on his seat in Sydney’s west, won with a 0.6 per cent margin.

Ms Berejiklian was forced to resign after appearing at the Independent Commission Against Corruption, which revealed she had been in an intimate relationship with former Wagga Wagga MP Daryl Maguire, the focus of the Operation Keppel probe into his misuse of public office.

She later took up an executive position with telecommuni­cations firm Optus, as managing director, enterprise, business and institutional.

In early January, ICAC announced the final report into the Operation Keppel probe was going to be delayed until the second quarter of the year. It is considering whether Ms Berejiklian breached public trust or encouraged corrupt conduct during her relationship with Mr Maguire.

Ms Berejiklian denies any wrongdoing.