LIVE: Eddie Obeid jailed for 5 years for Circular Quay corruption

As the prison door clanks shut on Eddie Obeid, we conclude our live blog on this historic day in NSW politics.

Of course, the fights are far from over. Obeid's legal team have already foreshadowed an appeal against the 73-year-old's conviction and sentence, arguing there has been a "miscarriage of justice".

Expect every point to be taken. The former Labor minister and his middle son, Moses, will also face a committal hearing next year after both men were charged over a $30 million coal deal exposed in a separate ICAC inquiry.

The hearing will assess the strength of the prosecution's case and determine if the men should stand trial. No doubt the prospect of a second trial is sending chills down the collective spine of the Obeid clain.

That concludes the Herald's live blog. Thanks for reading.

Former Labor Premier Morris Iemma – who resigned in 2008 after Obeid and his factional supporters blocked Mr Iemma from reshaping his cabinet – declared it "a great day for NSW".

"It's vindication that when I stood up to him I was right," he told the Herald's state political editor Sean Nicholls.

"I paid a heavy price personally but today is a day of satisfaction in that he's got his just deserts".

"It's confirmation that no-one is above the law. The [jail] term can't be long enough."

Former Labor Premier Nathan Rees, who was famously rolled by Obeid and his colleagues in the ALP's dominant Right faction, said "Eddie Obeid is the most odious politician most Australians have ever seen."

"He also has damaged the standing of NSW parliament and its politicians," Rees told Herald scoop Kate McClymont.

"Most importantly he's undermined the public's confidence in our democracy."

This outcome, he said, is one that should be welcomed by the people of NSW.

You might remember that the judge who presided over the Harriet Wran trial launched a scathing attack on the media's coverage of the case.

Justice Ian Harrison, who was referring in particular to articles in The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph, took the "sustained and unpleasant" media campaign against Wran into account when sentencing her for robbery in company and being an accessory after the fact to murder.

Obeid's legal team also argued media coverage was a form of "extra-curial punishment" which should reduce any sentence imposed by the judge.

But Justice Beech-Jones said that, unlike Obeid, Wran was "not a public figure and her offending did not involve the abuse of any public position".

He said the Obeid reports were "concerned with the subject matter of corruption and politics, which is self‑evidently a topic of legitimate public debate".

You heard it here first. Obeid's son-in-law Majid Saab branded the family patriarch's prison sentence "absolutely appalling".

Eddie Obeid is not the first politician to do a stint behind bars, although he is among the oldest.

Herald scoop Kate McClymont and I take a look at some of our famous political jailbirds.

You can read the full story here.