Gladys Berejiklian is standing firm behind her "united team" and faced down claims her government is in crisis following the shock resignation of one of her parliamentary secretaries.
Catherine Cusack sensationally handed in her resignation late on Thursday after details emerged of a scathing email in which she slammed Ms Berejiklian about the makeup of her cabinet - saying it was based on factions rather than merit.
The NSW premier said while the Liberal MP was entitled to her opinion, she did not support views.
"I don't blame people for being disappointed at not being in cabinet," Ms Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney on Friday.
The damning email, sent after a factional meeting late on Wednesday night, particularly took aim at newly installed Energy Minister Don Harwin.
"He's easily flustered; he's wafer thin skinned. This is all resulting in gross embarrassment in the upper house," Ms Cusack wrote in the nine-page letter.
The upper house MP also threatened to quit and move to the crossbench if the premier repeated her claim that the cabinet was appointed solely on merit.
"I am giving you the heads up people are very angry and it's unsustainable," Ms Cusack wrote.
Ms Berejiklian rebuked those comments, saying all her ministers had her "full confidence".
When grilled on whether her colleagues were at war with each other, the premier replied: "It was an email from one person. Put it into perspective."
"We are a strong and united team," she added.
But opposition leader Luke Foley said Ms Cusack was made to "walk the plank for telling the truth".
"And my concern, my anger actually, is that we've got extremists in our schools, fake doctors in our hospitals, shambolic light rail projects spiralling out of control, whilst the Liberals just squabble among themselves engaged in a saloon bar brawl," he said.
Ms Cusack, who will step down from her role as parliamentary secretary for the Hunter region and Education, would not be drawn on whether she stood by her comments on Mr Harwin on Friday.
"My only comment is that it was poor judgement to send the email and I take responsibility and have resigned," she told AAP.
"I sincerely apologise to people I have let down," she said.
Mr Harwin's elevation to cabinet in the January reshuffle was widely believed to be a result of factional deals.
The energy minister declined to comment on Ms Cusack's stinging assessment.
Share
