Just two months in the job, the Treasurer announced the first surplus on Tuesday since the Coalition won office in 2011.

"This budget presents a horizon without a deficit in sight," she said. "... It cements NSW as the place to live, work and invest."

The mood across on the Opposition benches reflected the Coalition's financial acumen.

Labor MPs mostly sat doggo while Ms Berejiklian​ efficiently raced through her 4400-word speech in a spot-on 30 minutes.

One thought she came across as a pleasant bank manager who held or the cards. Another thought she had the attributes of ATM, "pre-programmed and dauntless".

There was not the crude haranguing that has accompanied the budget speeches of her friend Joe Hockey.

In fact, interruptions were few.

Only when she boasted that, after four year's hard work the Coalition had completely turned around the $4.4 billion deficit left by Labor, a desultory cry, "what about the previous 15 years?", drifted over from the mouth of an Opposition amnesiac.

Labor MPs became mildly agitated when Ms Berejiklian​ spoke rosily about the devastated TAFE sector:

"We are also strengthening vocational education and training through the Smart and Skilled program, helping people to upskill or retrain so they are qualified to enter the workforce, or move ahead in their careers.

"Mr Deputy Speaker, this Government is investing $2.3 billion in 2015-16 to reform the vocational education and training system to further build the skills of our workforce and contribute to improving the New South Wales economy."

Ms Berejiklian​ had been spruiked as a potential Liberal treasurer almost since the day she entered parliament in 2003.

But she treated her big day as a normal work day, even catching the bus to work.

On hand in the public gallery to watch Ms Berejiklian​ fulfil her destiny was a former Liberal leader Kerry Chikarovski.

"I went for nostalgic reasons. I wanted to see the first female treasurer deliver her first speech, after all, I had a few first myself," Ms Chikarovski said.

Her predecessor as Liberal leader and a Berejiklian​ mentor, Peter Collins, and Charles Casuscelli​, who held the Labor heartland seat of Strathfield for the Liberals, sat together for the speech.

Years before, after completing university and running the NSW Young Libs, Berejiklian​ rang Collins, then the Liberal MP for Willoughby, and asked for a job.

She became something of his right hand woman, eventually winning preselection for his seat.

Having delivered her speech, Ms Berejiklian​ returned to the Martin Place aerie where the Coalition runs NSW for a press conference.

When Mike Baird won power in March he named Ms Berejiklian​ his treasurer and switched the incumbent Andrew Constance to her old job as Transport Minister.

But Ms Berejiklian​ is apparently experiencing separation difficulties: she strode into her post budget speech press conference at precisely 1pm and noted her "on-time running".