NSW Minister for Customer Service and Minister for Digital Victor Dominello, the nation’s most successful political leader engaged in the technology transformation of government, has announced plans to leave politics.
In a statement issued Wednesday morning Mr Dominello said he had made “the difficult decision” to retire from political life and would not contest the NSW election in March next year, citing a family health issue that emerged in mid-2019 and has since deteriorated.
Mr Dominello has held the seat of Ryde for 14 years and has served as a minister since 2011 under four Liberal state Premiers – Barry O’Farrell, Mike Baird, Gladys Berejiklian and now Dominic Perrottet.
The resignation will land as a massive blow to the Perrottet Government. Mr Dominello is one of the most senior members of Cabinet and has made giant strides – and political benefits – in delivering improved government services based on digital platforms.
Mr Dominello’s resignation comes at a time of unprecedented political turmoil in NSW as Premier Perrottet deals with the stench of a highly questionable appointment process that led to the appointment of former deputy premier John Barilaro to a $500,000 state trade commissioner role in New York.
The resignation also lands as the NSW branch of the Liberal Party remains roiled in political infighting.
Mr Dominello said in a statement that he would remain in the Cabinet until March 2023 and would continue to “put my heart and soul into delivering on the state’s digital transformation agenda.”
“We have worked across all agencies of government to fundamentally transform service delivery in NSW, making things easier and saving time for the people of the state,” Mr Dominello said.
“We created a world-first Department of Customer Service and led a significant evolution of Service NSW, both of which played a critical role during the pandemic and recent natural disasters,” he said.
“With the introduction of the Digital Driver Licence, the ServiceNSW app, QR check-ins, Dine & Discover vouchers and numerous other features we have seen an incredible era of digital transformation and uplift across NSW in which we have led the nation and, on occasion, the world.”
Mr Dominello said the foundations were now in place for a successful future in the digital era. He has pledged to complete a number of projects over his remaining seven months in the role, including the roll-out of a digital birth certificate, an “education wallet”, verifiable credentials and eConveyancing reform.
Mr Dominello will deliver a digital transformation update in Canberra today at an Australian Information Industry Association luncheon.
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Victor retiring is a real loss. A very capable minister, who delivered and genuinely made a great contribution.