Former NSW Labor minister Ian Macdonald jailed again over coal mine deals in the Hunter Valley

Ian Michael Macdonald, 74, appeared at the NSW Supreme Court on Friday after being found guilty in a judge-alone retrial over two charges of misconduct in public office.

Justice Hament Dhanji sentenced the former resources minister to two concurrent sentences over the granting of licences to Doyles Creek Mining, chaired by former union boss John Maitland, without a competitive tender in 2008.

As a minister and cabinet member, Macdonald "breached the significant trust imposed on him" in these senior political roles, the judge said.

"The real harm done by the offending is the damage to the institution of government and the concomitant erosion of public trust."

Macdonald first granted DCM consent to apply for an exploration licence in August 2008 and then gave the firm the actual exploration licence in December that year.

Maitland, a former national secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, was found not guilty of being an accessory last December.

The mine, proposed to be located near the township of Jerrys Plains, was estimated to hold approximately 91 million tonnes of coking coal worth about $9.1 billion.

Macdonald had an obligation to ensure resources like this were used in the best interests of the people of NSW, Justice Dhanji said.

"The mineral resources of NSW are owned by the state. They are finite. Once exploited, they are gone."

Maitland proposed to establish a commercial mine, plus a training mine which he claimed would benefit skill shortages in the industry.

This arrangement did not benefit the people of NSW and rather provided significant commercial results for DCM and Maitland, Justice Dhanji said.

There was no evidence Macdonald himself received any reward for granting these licences. However the judge found it was likely he expected some recompense, particularly given his impending retirement at the time.

The sentences of eight years, and six years and six months relating to the two charges have respective non-parole periods of five years and six months, and four years and six months.

In handing down these sentences, Justice Dhanji took into account Macdonald's old age and his onerous conditions in custody.

These included developing a hernia which was left untreated for years, being in isolation due to threats he received because of his high profile, and harsher conditions due to COVID-19 lockdowns.

In 2017, the minister lost his parliamentary pension and had to take up work as a cleaner and gardener along with his wife to make ends meet.

Macdonald had already spent one year and nine months in custody over these offences before successfully overturning his conviction in February 2019.

The two sentences given on Friday will run alongside jail time imposed over separate corrupt behaviour in office after Macdonald entered into a conspiracy with former Labor minister Eddie Obeid and his son Moses Obeid.

The former mining minister committed wilful misconduct in public office over his award of a coal exploration licence that granted the Obeid family a $30 million windfall.

He will be eligible for parole on January 20, 2027.

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