FORMER NSW deputy premier Jack Ferguson died yesterday after a long illness.

Mr Ferguson, father of federal Labor frontbenchers Laurie and Martin, was a member of the NSW parliament from 1959 to 1984, serving as deputy to premier Neville Wran from 1976-84. During his career he was also minister for housing, minister for public works and deputy leader of the NSW parliamentary Labor Party.

Premier Bob Carr said last night Mr Ferguson had all the loyalty, decency and humility of Labor’s old school.

“Jack Ferguson was no ordinary MP,” said Mr Carr. “He was leader of the Labor Left at a crucial time. He brought a sceptical Left behind Wran. Without Mr Ferguson … there would have been no Wranslides. No 12 years of Labor government in the 70s and 80s.”

Mr Ferguson’s politics derived partly from the grinding poverty of his childhood. He was born in a terrace in

the poor inner-Sydney suburb of Zetland, which his father had been briefly provided with as a member of the fire brigade, the last full-time job he ever had. In his maiden speech in 1959, Mr Ferguson talked of suburbs “without sewerage, decent roads and footpaths”, arguing for better planning and cheaper housing. As a minister, he liked nothing better than to open new hospitals, schools, public housing and roads in outer suburbs that needed them.

Former NSW education minister and parliamentary colleague Rodney Cavalier said last night: “Jack was one of the Left’s leaders and conscience, one of the few who could transcend the factional divide and provide an ethical base for party decision-making.”

He is survived by his wife of 51 years Mary, three sons, two daughters and numerous grandchildren.