HIGHER PARLIAMENTARY SALARIES PROPOSED

Press, Volume XCII, Issue 27734, 11 August 1955, Page 12

HIGHER PARLIAMENTARY SALARIES PROPOSED

Recommendations By Roya Commission

SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN ALLOWANCES

(From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, August 10. Substantial increases in Parliamentary salaries and allowances have been recommended by the Royal Commission which was appointed in May this year to review the present scales. The commission’s report was tabled by the Prime Minister (Mr Holland) in the House of Representatives today. The report recommends salary increases of 25 per cent, for the Prime Minister and Ministers, and of 22 per cent, for other members of the House. Proposed increases in allowances are 50 per cent, for the Prime Minister, 22 per cent, for Ministers, and amounts ranging from 10 per cent, to 23 per cent, for other members,, except the member for Southern Maori, for whom; an increase of 75 per cent, is recommended. - - . No hint of- when the Executive Council would meet to consider the Order-in-Council making the recommendations effective was given by Mr Holland when he was questioned this evening. He declined to make* any comment, except to repeat his view that salaries should be fixed automatically by a commission at the beginning of each Parliament. The Leader of the Opposition (Mr Nash); who has received an additional £350 in salary and £155 in allowances, also declined to comment.

The last Increases io Ministers and members were fiven in 1951. No comment wu made by «ny member ta the House when the report woe presented. ■ The details of the report were liven to ■ Government caucus half an hour before the House sat, but the Opposition caucus' wss not called together, although Mr Nash and his deputy (Mr C. F. Skinner) last evening had a fairly long private meeting with Mr Holland. When Opposition members this afternoon criticised the purchase of houses for Ministers, Mr Holland said he was perhaps more sensitive than other members, but he could claim he had some part “in im-roving the conditions of members of Parliament vastly." The Royal Commission comprised Mr W. E. Barnard, of Tauranga, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, who was chairman; Mr J. H. Boyes, a former member of the Public Service Commission; and Mr Carl V. Smith, of Dunedin, a company executive. According to the Press. Association, the commission says in its report that, in arriving at its conclusions, it was bound to take into consideration the fact that members have received no increase in salaries or allowances since 1951. so that they are financially behind the bulk of earners, whose position has been improved during the last four years. In recommending that the salaries of Ministers be increased, the commission feels that, thought the responsibilities and tasks of Ministers vary in accordance with the pature of «heir portfolios, the increases recommended are not necessarily commensurate with the burdens borne. Consideration might be given to an adjustment of Ministerial salaries in relation to one another. This has been done in Australia. Summary of Proposals The salaries and expense allowances recommended bv the commission, and the existing salaries and allowances, are as follows: — , Ronnm. Kxist-

torate. Where the Ministerial Office of Minister of External Affairs is held by a Minister other than the Prime Minister, an additional expense allowance of £165 is recommended (making the total £715 instead of £600). Residential quarters and certain services are provided in Parliament House for Mr Speaker. Sessional sleeping-quarter* are provided in Parliament House for the Chairman of Committees. Allowances to Members The basis recommended for the payment of the allowances to members is as follows, with the existing rates given in parentheses:— A basic expense allowance payable to all member* of £275 (£250). A sessional accommodation allowance payable to all members other than those representing Onslow, Hutt, Petone, and the electorates in or around the Wellington city area, £165 (£150). A special additional allowance payable to members representing substantially urban electorates to meet extra travelling costs, £25; or a special additional allowance payable to members representing partly urban and partly rural electorates to meet additional travel costs, £B2 10s (£75); or a special additional allowance payable to members representing predominantly rural electorates to meet the extra travel cost* involved, £165 (£150). A special additional allowance to the member . for Southern Maori, £lOO. A special additional allowance to the members for the other three Maori seats, £5O. The Commission on Salaries recommends that the classification of electorates should be made by the Representation Commission, which has a detailed knowledge of their area, population, and topographical features. It recommends that the State should provide a pool of typists during sessions to assist members with their correspondence. The increases in salaries and allowances should become effective from August 1, says the commission. Trie’report says the commission devoted particular attention to the increase in the cost of living during the last four years and also the rises in wages and salaries over that period. When a member or a Minister re-

tires after year* of *ervice, not only has he to find way* and means of rehabilitating himself into civil life, but he loses the prestige and many of the privileges attached to his office. The life and work of a member is not always sufficiently understood or. appreciated by the average citizen, says the report. If one took the trouble to ascertain how many Ministers and members have died in office during, say, the last 20 years, one would find that very few of them attained the age of 70. On the other hand, those who retired in good time often lived to a ripe old age. Public demand and the ever-increas-ing exigencies of modern life mean that the burdens of a Minister or member are steadily becoming heavier, the commission says. It feels bound not only to meet the legitimate requirements of members of Parliament, but also to secure as far as possible the approval of public opinion. In aIL its deliberations, the commission has paid attention to the office and its duties and responsibilities, and ha* disregarded the financial position of a. Minister or member outside his Parliamentary salary end allowances. Anomalies Noted Referring to allowances (which are free of income tax), the commission says that, though some minor expense* have decreased there has been a substantial increase in others. It thinks an increase of 10 per cent, in allowances is fair and reasonable, but there are some anomalies that z call for special treatment. The commission considers that an expense allowance of £lOOO is entirely inadequate 4o meet the large expenditure of a Prime Minister, which includes at times substantial entertainment both at home and abroad. Ministers do not receive any sessional allowance, and they must reside in Wellington; and most of them have to maintain two homes throughout the year. Moreover, the cost to a Minister of entertainment and donations probably exceeded that of the average private member, the commission says. It found on examination that the position of Ministers is less satisfactory than expected by the 1951 commission. In the light of the responsibilities and relative expenses of the Leader of the Opposition, it is plain that the present general expense allowance paid to him is insufficient, says the report. Mr Speaker is expected to provide, and does provide a substantial volume of entertainment when Parliament is in session, and the commission says it considers that the charges of this duty have been under-estimated. Discussing the Maori electorates, the commission says the evidence of the member foi; Southern Maori (Mr E. T. Tirikatene) was that he now covered the area of 43 European electorates. The electorates of the remaining three Maori members are also very large, and absorb all the rest of the North Island. The expenses of all four in making contact with their widely scattered constituents are obviously heavy. Travel Within Electorates Evidence supplied indicates that several electorates, such as Waitakere, Heretaunga, Onslow, and St. Kilda, require consideration in relation to the problem of travel says the report. A case was made out for the grant of a special additional allowance for members in electorates which are substantially urban, and in which the use of a private car is essential. “While the subject of members’ superannuation did not appear to come within the scope of the inquiry, some reference was made to it in evidence,” says the commission’s report. “We were informed that the fund, which does not receive any subsidy from the St te, is at present financially strong and self-supporting. “A suggestion was made that the contributions of members be increased, with a relative increase in benefits. We venture to say that this seems to us a desirable and justifiable step. ‘Wage-earners, civil servants, and others have received more than one increase of income since 1951,” the report says. “What we have recommended is designed to bring our legislators into line with those sections of the community whose claims to a larger income have already been recognised and provided-for. “The remuneration of a member of Parliament should be high enough to attract into the political field men an/ women who are likely to render to the country capable and wise service.

“To those who complain of the high cost of Parliament and government—and it is an old song—we would point out that New Zealand now has a onechamber Parliament, and that, with the abolition in 1951 of the Legislative Council, the country was saved an annual expenditure of approximately £32,000. “The cost of Parliament in New Zealand is not high in comparison with other realms of the Cominonowealth. Money should not be the last word in this report,” the commission says.

Recommended £ Existing £ Prime Minister— 3000 Salary 3750 Allowance 1500 1000 Ministers— Salary 2500 2000 Allowance 550 450 Ministers without Portfolio— Salary 2000 1650 * Allowance 450 400 Parliamentary Un-cJer-Secretaries— 1250 ' Salary 1500 Allowance 400 350 Mr SpeakerSalary 1950 1600 Allowance 600 500 Chairman of Committees— Salary 1575 1300 Allowance 500 350 Leader of Opposition— Salary 1950 1600 Allowance 490 400 Allowance for travel outside own electorate 215 150 Members— Salary 1100 900 Allowance* 275-705 250-550 ♦According to classification of elec-