The NSW and Victorian governments will lose a combined 403 years of parliamentary experience when a large group of MPs retire at each state’s coming elections.
As Crikey reported on Monday, more than two dozen government MPs have said they will quit. On Monday night another name was added to the list: NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard said he won’t run again, ending a 32-year career in Parliament.
Hazzard, who was key in managing the NSW coronavirus response, described the pandemic as a “gruelling and a deeply upsetting time”, and said it was “time for a new beginning”.
The 14 government MPs in Victoria who will quit at the November election have been in Parliament for a combined 211 years. Richmond MP Richard Wynne, who has held his seat since 1999, is the longest-serving to be leaving.
In NSW, where the 12 MPs who are quitting next March include five ministers, the government will lose 192 years of combined experience.
Monash University politics Professor Paul Strangio said the retirement rate could be explained by the fact both governments have been in power for a long time.
“The Coalition has been in office in NSW since 2011 and Labor has been in office in Victoria since 2014,” he said. “In that sense I don’t think it’s exceptional. Note, however, that not all of the departures are voluntary — the members have been pushed out for various reasons.”
Strangio said the quitters in Victoria’s lower house alone make up about a quarter of the Labor government’s seats in that chamber.
“What it does produce is a major injection of new blood,” he said. “Arguably a process of renewal, something which is difficult to achieve in government.”
Hazzard, who was first elected as the MP for Wakehurst in 1991, is by far the longest-serving NSW government member planning to quit.
The runner-up, Oxley MP Melinda Pavey, first entered Parliament as an upper house MP in 2002.
Victorian MPs who will retire
Martin Foley, Albert Park MP, ex-health minister — 15 years in Parliament.
James Merlino, Monbulk MP, ex-deputy premier — 20 years.
Lisa Neville, Bellarine MP, ex-police minister — 19 years.
Martin Pakula, Keysborough MP, ex-trade minister — 16 years.
Luke Donnellan, Narre Warren North MP, ex-child protection minister — 19 years.
John Eren, Lara MP, ex-sport minister — 19 years.
Mark Gepp, upper house MP for Northern Victoria — five years.
Danielle Green, Yan Yean MP — 19 years.
Dustin Halse, Ringwood MP — three years.
Jill Hennessy, Altona MP, ex-attorney general — 12 years.
Marlene Kairouz, Kororoit MP, ex-suburban development minister — 14 years.
Frank McGuire, Broadmeadows MP — 11 years.
Robin Scott, Preston MP, ex-veterans minister — 16 years.
Richard Wynne, Richmond MP, ex-planning minister — 23 years.
NSW MPs who will retire
Brad Hazzard, Wakehurst MP, health minister — 32 years.
David Elliott, Baulkham Hills MP, transport minister — 12 years.
Rob Stokes, Pittwater MP, infrastructure minister — 16 years.
Jonathan O’Dea, Davidson MP, speaker — 16 years.
Geoff Lee, Parramatta MP, corrections minister — 12 years.
Victor Dominello, Ryde MP, customer service minister — 15 years.
Kevin Connolly, Riverstone MP — 12 years.
Gabrielle Upton, Vaucluse MP, ex-attorney general — 12 years.
Shelley Hancock, South Coast MP, ex-local government minister — 20 years.
Stephen Bromhead, Myall Lakes MP — 12 years.
Chris Gulaptis, Clarence MP — 12 years.
Melinda Pavey, Oxley MP, ex-water minister — 21 years.
What do you think is the REAL reason so many NSW MPs are quitting? Let us know by writing to letters@crikey.com.au. Please include your full name to be considered for publication. We reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.
We have been told over and over how rotten is the politics of VIC and NSW. So instead of fearing the loss of ‘experience’ why not celebrate this as cleaning out 403 years worth of parliamentary corruption? Those that were not actively involved must at least have been tolerating it. They knew what sort of sewer they were swimming in. Is this not an opportunity to find replacements with some grasp of ethics?
Agreed-mostly.
That said I’m sorry to see Dominello leave.
His willingness to take on the gambling industry in NSW was rewarded with rapid fire demotion.
A reminder, if we needed one, of who actually runs the place.
There is a world of difference between, say, twenty years of service and one year served twenty times.
Did they all serve all those years accumulating wisdom and experience? Or did many of them just serve the one year and repeat it over and over?
IN the NSW case of Elliott and Hazzard, good riddance to both I reckon. The loss of Dominello and Stokes is unfortunate, as both seemed capable and not in developers’ pockets. Dominic Perrottet who displayed nothing more than double dealing and bungling as treasurer has displayed the same as Premier with his deadly Covid let ‘er rip and a series of transport cock ups and rather than “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap”, Dodgy Deals Done real Dear is the order of the day. Unfortunatrely being a right wing privatisation freak, he is removing anyone that is not and further disaster seems to loom for NSW.
Have to agree with you OGO regarding Elliott and Hazzard, and would add Bromhead to the list of those I’m not sorry to see retiring.
I’d go as far as saying Hazzard should have gone during the early days of the Pandemic, not when it is in its third year …. perhaps, let’s say during the Ruby Princess fiasco?
Bromhead? He was (my) State MP for almost five years until we moved recently.
During my almost five years of observation of his “experience” in politics, he appeared to be (like his Puppet master, Dr David Gillespie) full of wondrous front-page announcements and photo-ops and little else.
I vividly recall people laughing at me when we first moved to the area, and I said how great it was that a Public hospital was being built for the people of Forster-Tuncurry, according to what I’d read in the local paper. Turned out that Bromhead had been spruiking that “news” for years prior.
In fact, during one of my brief stays in the REAL “local” public hospital (Taree), staff there, had a great laugh at my comments, suggesting that Bromhead and Gillespie usually only made these announcements whenever there was an Election coming up, or to divert attention from negative media reports.
The very best gaffe of Bromhead’s for me though was when he announced in his usual front-page photo shoot that mask wearing had been mandated everywhere in public, including shopping centres, from midnight the previous night ,as he stood smiling for the camera, in the middle of Stockland Mall at Forster, completely unmasked ?….yes, Good Riddance, I say!
I dare say the electorate would have been better if they’d not experienced a few of those years of “experience”?
Good to see the back of both Elliott and Brad the Health Hazzard. Hazzard should have been sacked after the Ruby Princess debacle. One suspects the only reason he wasn’t was that no-one else wanted the hospital pass of the health portfolio at that time.
And his Secret Squirrel conduct during the parliamentary inquiry (Aug 10 last year) into the Sydney lock-down.