The NSW Cabinet Papers of 1990 have been published online by NSW State Archives giving the public an insight into the detailed workings of the then Government in its third year in power.
The Archives said the annual release of NSW Cabinet Papers was aimed at increasing public awareness of important milestones in the history of NSW and the State Government.
“We highlight the themes and topics considered by NSW Cabinet from 30 years ago,” the Archives said.
“A major initiative was the State’s first private prison,” it said.
“As well as according with the Government’s ideological commitment to privatisation, a cost-effective solution had to be found to relieve prison overcrowding.”
The Archives said 1990 also saw the introduction of the Education Reform Act which enshrined in legislation many of changes that the then Minister for Education and Youth Affairs, Terry Metherell had made administratively.
It said the State also introduced reforms to industrial relations to reflect a market-oriented approach, and made Parliamentary and Electoral reforms which saw the size of the Legislative Assembly reduced to 99, down from 109.
“Coastal protection was a key challenge for the Government,” the Archives said.
“(The then Premier Nick Greiner’s) ‘new environmentalism’ had to be reconciled with pressure for more development and the negative economic impact of conservation measures,” it said.
“A significant reform was the establishment of the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).”
The Archives said the then Minister for the Environment, Tim Moore’s aim in establishing the EPA was to create a comprehensive, integrated Agency that would co-ordinate environmental protection, regulation, rehabilitation, enforcement and education.
It said other significant decisions revealed in the Cabinet Papers impacted on social issues with the approval of access to adoption information for adult adopted persons; the abolition of compulsory retirement; and amendments to the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983.
The Archives information on the 1990 Cabinet Papers can be accessed at this PS News link.
