State Government of New South Wales beginning 25 March 1988 - period in office of Premier Greiner, Nicholas Frank Hugo ending on 24 June 1992
Period in office of premier (see Glossary entry for 'period in office' and related terms)
Parliamentary support during period
Coalition partner 1
Coalition Minority
Result of general election
Number of ministers at beginning of period (this may vary during the period)
Assembly elections contested as premier or after which became premier (see Glossary entry for 'after election')
| Election | Premier at election | Premier's party | Premier after election | Premier's party |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW 25 May 1991 | Nicholas Frank Hugo Greiner | Liberal Party | Nicholas Frank Hugo Greiner | Liberal Party |
| NSW 19 March 1988 | Barrie John Unsworth | Australian Labor Party | Nicholas Frank Hugo Greiner | Liberal Party |
Previous period in this series for NSW | Next period in this series for NSW
Notes
Loss of election (Unsworth): Beginning of Greiner's period in office; see Jim Hagan and Craig Clothier, '1988' in Michael Hogan and David Clune (editors), The People's Choice: Electoral Politics in 20th Century New South Wales, vol. 3 (1968-1999), pp. 251-281 at p. 254, (Sydney: Parliament of New South Wales and University of Sydney, 2001, ISBN 0909907412).
Change in parliamentary support: 'Following the [May] 1991 election, the government held 49 of the 99 seats against the opposition's 46 and there were four independents. Greiner unsuccessfully approached long-serving Independent John Hatton (South Coast) about the possibility of his becoming Speaker to break the deadlock. However, the coalition government secured the support of "conservative Independent" Tony Windsor and made commitments to provide significant benefits to his Tamworth electorate'; further negotiations with other independents led to the government's adoption of a 'Charter of Reform' to secure support for the Greiner coalition minority government; see Tony Smith, '1995', in Michael Hogan and David Clune (editors), The People's Choice: Electoral Politics in 20th Century New South Wales, vol. 3 (1968-1999), pp. 323-368 at pp. 323-324, (Sydney: Parliament of New South Wales and University of Sydney, 2001, ISBN 0909907412).
Change of party leader (Greiner): When Terry Metherell failed to be reappointed to the ministry after the 1991 election, he resigned from the Liberal Party and sat in the Assembly as an Independent, further weakening the position of the Greiner Liberal Party and National Party coalition minority government. In April 1992, Metherell resigned his seat in the Legislative Assembly providing the Liberal Party with the opportunity to regain control of the seat at a by-election. '[Metherell's] appointment to a senior public service role led to an inquiry by the Independent Commission Against Corruption; its report released on 19 June 1992 was critical of [Premier] Greiner's and [Environment minister Tim] Moore's parts in the affair. Proposals for a motion of confidence led to their resignations on 24 June; [Michael] Yabsley, who supported them, also resigned. Fahey was elected leader and [Bruce] Baird deputy leader. The ICAC findings against Greiner and Moore were subsequently overturned in the NSW Court of Appeal', Hughes, p. 54, (see 'Sources', below); for more details of these events, see Melleuish, pp. 457-460 (see 'References', below), and Tony Smith, '1995', in Michael Hogan and David Clune (editors), The People's Choice: Electoral Politics in 20th Century New South Wales, vol. 3 (1968-1999), pp. 323-368 at pp. 323-328, (Sydney: Parliament of New South Wales and University of Sydney, 2001, ISBN 0909907412).
References: For an analysis of the role of Premier in New South Wales, see David Clune and Ken Turner, 'Introduction: The Changing Role of the Premier in the 20th Century', pp. 1-14, in Clune and Turner vol. 2 (see, 'Sources', below), and for a review of government policies under Premier Greiner, see Martin Laffin and Martin Painter, Reform and Reversal: Lessons from the Coalition Government in New South Wales 1988-1995, (South Melbourne, Vic.: Macmillan, 1995, ISBN 0732931673).
For a survey of Greiner's political career, see Greg Melleuish, 'Nicholas Frank Greiner', in Clune and Turner, vol. 2, pp. 443-462, (see 'Sources', below).
Sources
David Clune and Ken Turner (editors), The Premiers of New South Wales, vol. 2, (1901-2005), (Sydney: Federation Press, 2006, ISBN 186287551); Colin A Hughes, A Handbook of Australian Government and Politics 1985-1999, pp. 298-311, (Sydney: Federation Press, 2002, ISBN 1862874344); New South Wales, Parliament, The New South Wales Parliamentary Record: Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly, 1824-1999, vol. VI, pp. 246-308, (Sydney: Parliament of New South Wales, 1999). In consulting these sources, note the difference between ministries and periods in office.