New look NSW Ministry Minister for the Illawarra role cut

New look NSW Ministry – Minister for the Illawarra role cutNSW Premier Mike Baird has unveiled his new Ministry and in a surprise move announced that he would scrap the position of Minister for the Illawarra, instead appointing Kiama MP Gareth Ward as Parliamentary Secretary for the Illawarra. Announcing his new cabinet, Premier Baird dumped all regional ministries, except that of Western Sydney, which he holds.The Illawarra Ministry was established by Labor in 2003 to give the region heavyweight representation in Macquarie Street. While the NSW Government has dumped the Minister for the Illawarra position the NSW Opposition has retained the Shadow Minister for the Illawarra role with Keira MP Ryan Park keeping that position and also taking on the role as Shadow Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. The new Parliamentary Secretary for the Illawarra Gareth Ward and the Shadow Minister for the Illawarra Ryan Park are both born, bred and educated in the Illawarra, and are the two stand out political performers in the region. Mr Ward said his new role meant he would report into cabinet and hold his Government to its Illawarra election commitments. In scrapping the Minister for the Illawarra role, he said his new lesser position would not disadvantage residents.”It’s not really any different, because the regional ministries were always attached to something else anyway. My job is to be the region’s voice in the Government and that’s what I intend to do,” Mr Ward said. Shadow Minister for the Illawarra Ryan Park said Mr Ward would not be in the cabinet room in his new position, meaning he would not be directly involved in making decisions for the Illawarra. “Decisions are not made by Parliamentary Secretaries and I am disgusted that, in the first week of a new term of Government, they have decided the Illawarra is not worth having a cabinet Minister,” Mr Park said.What is clear is that both Mr Ward and Mr Park are passionate representatives of the Illawarra and are certainly on the way up in their own respective parties.Mr Ward’s task is now to ensure that the Illawarra is not forgotten at the cabinet table and from his track record so far, the Illawarra can take comfort that he will provide the region with a strong standard of representation in Macquarie Street.