Nice work if you can get it: premier pockets plenty
Premier Jacinta Allan is set to rake in a hefty half a million dollar salary, securing her position as Australia's second-highest paid politician.
After a pay bump, the Victorian leader will pocket $512,972, trailing only Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's $620,000 pay cheque.
The $14,941 pay rise comes after a decision by the Victorian Independent Remuneration Tribunal to increase MP salaries and allowances by three per cent on Monday.
The premier's package includes an expense allowance of $64,475.
Deputy Premier Ben Carroll will soon be paid $236,662, while Opposition Leader Brad Battin will collect $409,107.
Backbench MPs will have a base salary of $211.972.
The increase is slightly below the 3.5 per cent pay rise set to take effect for minimum wage workers from Tuesday following the Fair Work Commission's annual review.
Ms Allan remains the highest paid state or territory leader, ahead of Queensland Premier David Crisafulli ($476,323) and NSW Premier Chris Minns ($416,440).
Although the wage for NSW MPs could rise in the coming weeks as a two-year salary freeze comes to an end.
Mr Minns could receive an additional $14,575, pushing his salary to roughly $431,015, if a proposed 3.5 per cent pay rise goes ahead.
NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro is the lowest paid state or territory leader.
But things are looking up for Country Liberal Party boss after her base salary jumped more than $16,000 to $350,000 at the start of 2025.
At the same time the base pay for NT MPs went from $166,763 to $175,000, equating to an increase of almost five per cent.
The steep uptick followed politicians and public servants' wages being frozen for several years under the former NT Labor government.
Tasmanian politicians are set to receive a $30,000 increase in their base salary after a determination by Tasmania's Industrial Commission.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff ruled out the 22 per cent pay rise for politicians on June 9, which will see his own salary increase from $301,397 to $368,783.
But the pay rise will proceed from Tuesday, as parliament was dissolved before any move to disallow it could be made.
If re-elected, Mr Rockliff has pledged to overturn the increase.
The pay cheques of Australian politicians compare fairly well to the rest of the world.
In comparison, US President Donald Trump reportedly earns US$400,000 (about AUD $617,000).
Meanwhile, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong remains the world's highest-paid government leader, reportedly collecting S$2.2 million (AUD $2.5 million) last year.
AUSTRALIA'S HIGHEST EARNING STATE AND TERRITORY LEADERS:
* Jacinta Allan (Victoria) - $512,972
* David Crisafulli (Queensland) - $476,323
* Chris Minns (NSW) - $416,440
* Peter Malinauskas (SA) - reportedly about $450,000
* Andrew Barr (ACT) - $404,406
* Roger Cook (WA) - $406,324
* Jeremy Rockliff (Tasmania) - $368,784
* Lia Finocchiaro (NT) - $350,000
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sky News AU
37 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Major winners and losers on the ASX 200 revealed as the index posts best post-pandemic financial year performance in FY25
Australian banks, technology and gold companies have thrived over the past 12 months as the ASX 200 posted its best performance since a surge in 2021. Despite experiencing strong turbulence from Donald Trump's tariffs and the heated Iran-Israel conflict, the index rose more than 10 per cent in the 2025 financial year. The tech, financial and telecommunications services sectors all jumped about 25 per cent over the past 12 months. An Australian that wisely invested in local ship building and defense company Austal on July 1 2024 will have seen their cash grown more than 150 per cent over the 12 months. Gold miners have thrived with Regis Resources growing 157 per cent, Evolution Mining jumping 126 per cent, Gold Road Resources increasing 94 per cent and West African Resources rising 43 per cent. Investors flocked to gold as a safe haven after Trump's sweeping tariffs rocked global markets. Gold hit a record high of $5425 per ounce in April less than a fortnight after 'Liberation Day', before it settled around the $5200 mark. This is almost a $1000 boost from the beginning of the year. The ASX 200 has been lifted by the index's largest company Commonwealth Bank of Australia, which soared more than 45 per cent in 12 months. However, many analysts believe CBA's evaluation is exorbitant and anticipate a downturn as the major bank's share of the ASX 200 has grown from nine per cent to 12 per cent over the past year. Another major Australian company to thrive over the recent year was Qantas as it continues to recover from its post-pandemic reputational tarnishing, skyrocketing the stock price more than 81 per cent. The Flying Kangaroo's market dominance of the local aviation sector and its stellar financial performance have ensured the carrier continues to give back to shareholders - even delivering the airline's first dividend since before the pandemic. Qantas' share price will come under the microscope over the coming months after Virgin Australia went public and exceeded its IPO by about 13 per cent in one day. Other solid performers in the 2025 financial year were seen in the tech sector. Digital financial services company Zip Co (up 115 per cent), Life360 (up 107 per cent), software company Technology One (up 125 per cent) and many others drove the tech sector as it continues to boom in Australia. While the ASX 200 reported stellar gains over the past 12 months, many Australian companies sank amid a myriad of challenges. International education company IDP Education fell a whopping 76 per cent after a long gradual decline due to caps on foreign students. In June, the company told shareholders it expected earnings to halve from global uncertainty around the intake of international students. "Continued uncertainty has impacted IDP student enrolment pipeline size and conversion rates in the important May and June pipeline build given the timing of the fall intake in the UK, Canada and the US, as well as the second semester intake in Australia," the company said. Mineral Resources, which was plagued by a tax controversy surrounding its outgoing CEO Chris Ellison, fell more than 60 per cent, while Pilbara Minerals sank 56 per cent following diminished demand from China for Australian commodities. Skin grafting company PolyNovo, which continues to be one of the most shorted companies on the bourse, plunged 48 per cent while pathology company Healius struggled with rising costs in the healthcare sector and dropped 47 per cent. Reduced discretionary spending ate into the share price of Webjet and Domino's Pizza as Australians were crippled by tighter budgets. Domino's also sank as it closed 172 outlets in Japan and about 30 elsewhere as pizza-eaters outside Australia and New Zealand turn away from the store. The ASX 200's rise comes as similar surges were seen in the United States and Europe. The Nasdaq Composite rose almost 14 per cent, the S&P 500 added 13 per cent and the Dow Jones finished up about 12.6 per cent while the STOXX Europe 600 index rose 5.5 per cent.
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
PM ‘scared' of fumbling potential White House meeting with Trump
The Australian's Foreign Editor Greg Sheridan discusses how Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has not been able to secure 'a single meeting' with US President Donald Trump. Penny Wong landed in Washington ahead of the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting – sharing a photo online alongside ambassador and former prime minister Kevin Rudd. 'Maybe Albanese is scared that he can't handle a meeting in the White House, that he will end up like Zelensky,' Mr Sheridan told Sky News Australia. 'But that's a pitiful position if the Australian prime minister is scared that he can't finesse a meeting.'
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
Albanese's national security cabinet ‘dominated' by left-wing ministers
The Australian's Foreign Editor Greg Sheridan says Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has 'no real interest' in national security and foreign affairs. Penny Wong landed in Washington ahead of the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting – sharing a photo online alongside ambassador and former prime minister Kevin Rudd. 'It's a government dominated by the senior left-wing ministers whereas national security was always a preserve of the right within the ALP,' Mr Sheridan told Sky News Australia. 'The Australian defence effort is completely pitiful; everyone recognises that; we barely spend two per cent of our GDP on defence.'
