The day when NSW politics was turned on its head

But it was on that day that NSW Labor politics was turned on its head, forcing about 180,000 voters in four seats to go to the polls yesterday.

By day's end, the deputy premier John Watkins was gone and the die was cast for Morris Iemma, Michael Costa and Reba Meagher.

On that sleepy September morning, television reporter Kevin Wilde finally got the chance to put to Mr Watkins the proposition that he had accepted a job with Alzheimer's Australia and was about to resign from State politics.

The opportunity to ask the question came when they did a one-on-one interview at the revamped Chatswood Railway Station, a project the then-transport minister was happy to spruik.

Stunned, Watkins stammered and stuttered, finally finding some reasonably non-committal words.

But his face said it all. Wilde's information was on the money but would it hold until 5pm?

It was apparent Watkins - the Government's best performer - had told no one, not even his leader, about his increasingly firm plans to vacate his seat of Ryde and start a new life beyond Macquarie Street.

Wilde suffered a kick in the guts when Watkins called a mid-afternoon press conference, flanked by Mr Iemma, to announce his departure.

But it was nothing compared with the kicks in store for the Government. Anti-Iemma forces led by Labor's NSW general secretary, Karl Bitar, kicked into action. On Friday, treasurer Michael Costa gave his swansong press conference after being knifed by Iemma.

Interestingly, the only minister Costa singled out for praise was Meagher, the then health minister.

(Since then we've found out we have a $1 billion budget black hole and staff in the hospitals that Meagher allegedly managed have to borrow bandages from vets because the health service is broke. There's synergy there.)

So the Watkins resignation precipitated the departures of Iemma, Costa and Meagher. Byelections for Ryde, Lakemba and Cabramatta lined up, with one more in Port Macquarie to replace popular independent Rob Oakeshott, who went to Canberra.

Premier Rees's office confirmed on Friday night that Unions NSW boss John Robertson had finally agreed to take Costa's Upper House spot.

Meanwhile, taxpayers have been left with a byelection bill of about $1.2 million, plus the approximately $800,000 a year it will cost us to keep the recently departed fed and watered.

With the exception of Watkins, the Labor leavers might be bitter and twisted but they won't want for a quid.

It's a sign of the times that some would even say their generous pensions are a small price to pay to see the back of them.