Former Minister Ian Macdonald given 10 years in jail for criminal misconduct

Macdonald, 68, is the second Labor figure to be jailed after explosive corruption inquiries that kicked off in November 2012.

Macdonald is a former NSW Labor resources minister who has been at the centre of one of the state's largest and most complex inquiries into corruption.

In a scathing judgment on Friday, Justice Christine Adamson said Macdonald knew giving a multimillion-dollar coal exploration licence to a company chaired by his political associate John Maitland "looked bad and was bad".

He had engaged in a "desperate attempt to justify the unjustifiable".

In a detailed judgment lasting more than three hours, she said Macdonald was "devious" and had a "misplaced sense of entitlement".

While the Crown had argued Macdonald was motivated to benefit his "mate", Justice Adamson said no clear motive was established and she could not rule out a financial motive.

She sentenced Macdonald to 10 years in prison with a non-parole period of seven years, expiring on May 25, 2024.

In a statement issued by his lawyer Macdonald said he intended to "appeal my conviction for these offences" and "strenuously" denied wrongdoing.

He said he was always motivated by a desire to further the public interest and "save miners' lives".

A jury found the former upper house MP guilty in March of two counts of misconduct in public office for awarding the licence to Doyles Creek Mining to benefit Maitland.

A former head of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, Maitland made $6 million from the deal and was found guilty as an accessory.

Macdonald and Obeid, along with Obeid's son Moses, are now facing a trial over a $30 million coal deal involving the Obeid family's rural property in the Bylong Valley.

On Tuesday, they waived their right to a committal hearing and will proceed directly to trial.

They will enter their pleas in the District Court on June 9.​