The Unsworth ministry was the 79th ministry of the New South Wales Government, and was led by the 36th Premier of New South Wales, Barrie Unsworth, representing the Labor Party.

After the surprise announcement in June 1986 that Neville Wran MP would retire as Premier, NSW Labor Leader, and from Parliament with effect from 4 July 1986,[1] Unsworth, then a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council, was elected as the leader of the NSW Labor Party and thus became Premier.

In order for Unsworth to move from the Legislative Council to the Legislative Assembly, Brian Bannon, the member for Rockdale, resigned to accept a role as Chairman of the Homebush States Sport Centre Trust,[2] and Unsworth contested the resulting by-election held on 2 August 1986.

[3] A by-election for Wran's safe Labor seat of Bass Hill was even worse, with a 22.2 per cent decline in the primary vote delivering a 103–vote victory to the Liberal candidate.

Fifteen of the twenty ministers retained some or all of their portfolios from the eighth Wran ministry.