Labor ministers are gone, gone, gone.... But troubles remain for the NSW North Coast

If Rupert's team is correct, then NSW Treasurer Michael Costa has been sacked from the NSW Labor ministry and will announce his own demise at 10am this morning.

Meagher, Greene and West are tipped to follow and Premier Iemma himself expected to stand down before Christmas this year, if the Ryde by-election shows a significant swing against Labor.

Crankie Frankie Sartor is also predicted to shift portfolios from Planning to Health.
A move which is likely to see already ailing rural and regional health services ripped apart in the same manner Sartor wrecked the development planning process.

If Carmel Tebbutt does step up to the position of NSW Premier, hopefully she will shift Sartor once again to a junior ministry where his very right-wing and elitist view of the world will do less damage to communities on the NSW North Coast.

Even Country Labor is rumoured to have little time for Frank now.

Update:

Morris Iemma resigned as NSW Premier later in the morning.

Sacked NSW Treasurer Michael Costa appears to believe that he can parley his position back from the new Premier, Nathan Rees.

Carmel Tebbutt has accepted the position of Deputy-Premier.

The cabinet reshuffle currently underway may still bring grief to the Northern Rivers.

Rees is rumoured to be in favour of the privatisation of regional water infrastructure despite his denials.

Outright privatisation or amalgamating water corporations across different catchment areas are often seen locally as scenarios which would be precursors to damming and diverting water from the Clarence River system.