Labor says it will build 100 new public preschools. Photo: 123rf
Chris Minns will be NSW's next premier and, for the first time in 12 years, Labor is back in power in Australia's most populous state.
Minns and his team promised "a fresh start" for NSW and they'll now have a chance to offer that.
"There are many challenges facing the state of New South Wales over the next four years," Minns said in his acceptance speech.
"The team I lead is ready for the challenges and opportunities of government and will not let the people of this state down."
Here are five things the new state government has promised to do.
More schools
Labor says it will build 100 new public preschools.
To make it happen, it plans to retrofit under-utilised schools to cater to younger students and make sure every new school built during the next term of government has a preschool on site.
Labor has also promised to give 10,000 temporary teachers permanent roles, in the hope it will help stem a 2,000-teacher shortage facing public primary and high schools.
Public schools will also have to roll out a ban on mobile phones within the grounds.
Smartwatches, tablets, and headphones will also be restricted to combat cyberbullying and improve social development.
Tolls to be capped
The new government has pledged to cap the weekly toll bill for Sydney motorists at $60.
It hopes this will leave 51,000 drivers per week better off when it commences on January 1, 2024, running for two years.
It's also reviewing some of the Coalition's plans, including a blueprint for the longest road tunnel in Australia, from Blackheath to Little Hartley.
Minns said further community consultation was needed before his government committed to the 11km link.
Cashless gaming trial
While the Coalition planned to make all poker machines cashless in NSW by 2028, Labor has only committed to a trial of the technology on 500 machines in the next 12 months.
An independent panel made up of law enforcement, health professionals and gambling experts will oversee the trial, paid for using the $100 million penalty from Star Casino from October last year.
Gaming machines will transition to a $50 cash feed-in limit and there will be a ban on signage like "VIP Lounge" where gaming is promoted.
While in opposition, Minns also said Labor would ban political parties from accepting donations from the clubs sector.
Health sector boost
While being hesitant to commit to a nursing-to-patient ratio system, Minns has made a minimum staffing level commitment for public hospitals.
The proposal, which was tentatively endorsed as a starting point by the Nurses and Midwives Association, would see an extra 1200 health professionals recruited into the system.
Photo: 123rf/ Georgiy Datsenko
But union secretary Shaye Candish said more needed to be done.
"It's not the entirety of the ratios we would hope for. It's absolutely the beginning of what we need. But we need more," she said.
The government will also be looking to hire an additional 500 paramedics in rural and regional areas across NSW.
Labor also says it will build a new 600-bed hospital in the Badgerys Creek area, close to the site of the Western Sydney Airport.
It's also promised to build a new 300-bed hospital at Rouse Hill, in Sydney's north-west.
Housing reforms
Minns has promised to create a NSW Rental Commission to "oversee the rights of renters overall".
The Minns government has also promised to ban secret rent bidding by mandating any offers above the listed price are made transparent to other applicants.
For those looking to enter the housing market, the new government will spend $722 million on a first homebuyers scheme axing stamp duty for properties up to $800,000 and discounting it on dwellings up to $1 million.
These measures would be in place of the Coalition's stamp duty reforms which passed last year.
