NSW electricity privatisation bid rejected 7 to 1

NSW electricity privatisation bid rejected 7 to 1

Delegates at the NSW ALP Conference in Sydney overwhelmingly rejected the State Government proposal to privatise electricity.

The final vote was 702 against electricity privatisation and 107 for it. The vote came after a lengthy debate where speakers, including union officials and Government ministers, outlined their positions on the proposed power sector reforms.

Before the vote ALP President Bernie Riordan pointed out the importance of Labor Party rules to the delegates:

"Those wanting to defy the conference should resign or render the annual gathering irrelevant ... This is a very, very serious day for the NSW Labor Party. It is a day when the history, traditions and principles, the moral standing and the fibre of our party must be protected and upheld ... If you don't want to follow the rules of the party, you don't have to stay in the party - there is no compulsion for people to stay.''

After the vote Unions NSW Secretary John Robertson said that the result was a clear rejection of the Government's privatisation plans.

"The men and women of the Labor Party have spoken and over 85 per cent of them have rejected the proposal," he said.

Mr Robertson said the decision was binding on every MP and every member of the party.

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