Annastacia Palaszczuk flips on payrise
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has been slammed for accepting a pay rise while calling for politician wage increases to be put on hold during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Queensland Independent Remuneration Tribunal decided on Monday that her salary should increase from $399,955 to $427,561.
This move makes her the second-highest-paid state premier, with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews taking the lead with $441,429 per year.
When Palaszczuk was asked why she accepted a pay rise despite wages stagnating in the private sector, she reportedly responded by saying “that’s a matter for the remuneration tribunal.”
“We’ve had the pay freezes and it’s nothing more than what the public service are getting paid, in fact it’s less,’’ she said, according to The Australian.
The Queensland Independent Remuneration Tribunal said that it decided to give politicians a pay rise due to the strong economy.
“While the economic forecast and outlook continue to remain uncertain as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it appears that the economy is rebounding, and the outlook is more positive than at the height of the pandemic in 2020 when the salary levels of members were last considered by the tribunal,” it explained.
Queensland MPs are receiving three pay increases, starting with a 2 per cent rise on September 1 2021, a 2.25 per cent increase on March 2022 and a 2.5 per cent increase on September 2022.