THE Baird government should brace for challenges to its reform agenda from minor parties in the upper house.
Fred Nile's Christian Democrat Party looks likely to hold the balance of power, with the two key votes the government needs to pass legislation through the 42 member chamber.
Privatisation of the metropolitan electricity network will be the government's number one priority.
By Premier Mike Baird's admission, the sell-off is government's only plan to fund its $20 billion infrastructure agenda.
Mr Nile said he would support the sale, but it might require some horse-trading to get there.
Mr Nile has called for an inquiry into the privatisation, which he hopes to chair, and wants all of his concerns satisfied before he would back laws to allow a sale of the assets.
His party wants electricity workers' employment to be guaranteed for five years under private owners and concrete commitments on the government's plans for rural and regional poles and wires.
"The Christian Democrats will not support any leasing of poles and wires until all our concerns are satisfied by the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry," he said.
His colleagues on the crossbench, from the Greens and Shooters and Fishers, are loud and proud on their opposition to privatisation - but their votes likely won't be required to pass the bill.
But the three parties found consensus in their concern about the government's TAFE reform, which has opened the vocational tertiary training market to private providers.
The government said the move would boost market competition and reduce public spending.
But educators said students' fees could rise too high and raised fears that regional TAFEs would close without replacement from the private sector.
It remains to be seen if the minor parties can leverage their vote for privatisation or other reforms to change TAFE policy.
In the 2014-15 state budget, TAFE lost $51 million in funding ("Bush to feel burn of TAFE slashes", The Land, July 3, p13).
The Greens are spruiking legislation to reverse the reforms.
Mr Nile said he would "strongly oppose" any cuts.
"They are a vital need for country areas... if you want to keep people in the country, you need strong TAFEs," Mr Nile said.
"There must be a public system that continues to be accessible to some of our most vulnerable and isolated students in coastal, rural and regional areas where access to public transport is very limited."
Shooters MLC Robert Brown said he would oppose future moves toward full privatisation of TAFE.
"The track record of privatised delivery of technical and further education services has proved to be a failure in our view," Mr Brown said.
However, support for native vegetation reform, which the Nationals have committed to deliver by November, is more forthcoming.
Mr Nile said farmers deserved greater autonomy in managing their own land.
"Farmer livelihoods depend on the yield of their land, so it is in their best interest to manage it efficiently and effectively," he said.
Mr Brown said the Shooters would support the Coalition's native vegetation reforms and "co-operate with NSW Farmers to make sure they're happy".
"If the government won't move NSW Farmers amendments, we will move them," Mr Brown said.
