Smallest Parliament, but the highest paid

Press, 24 October 1984, Page 6

Smallest Parliament, but the highest paid

NZPA-AAP Darwin , The 25 members of theNorthern Territory Legislative Assembly, the smallest Parliament in AUstraEa, are now the highest paid pohticians in the country. The newly-elected Chief Minister, Mr lan Tuxworth, is the highest paid pohtical leader in AustraEa, receiving nearly $3OOO more in base salary than the Prime Minister, Mr Hawke. A N.T. Remuneration Tribunal decided this week to award Territory politicians an immediate 11 per cent pay increase. The determination, tabled in the N.T. Parliament without debate, takes the base salary of N.T. Parliamentarians from sAust39,loo (about $61,000) to sAust44,ooo (about $69,000). In comparison, Federal Parliamentarians receive a base salary of sAust4l,Bo2. Base salaries for M.P.S in the most populous States range from sAust4l,466 in Queensland, sAust4l,3o2 in Victoria and sAust39,ssB in New South Wales. The wage increase means Mr Tuxworth, now has a base salary of sAust9o,6oo per annum. This compares with Mr Hawke’s base wage of sAustB7,B3B. It is only his considerably higher office and electoral aUowances which preserve Mr Hawke’s status as the politician who receives the most remuneration in Austraha. The total Prime Ministerial wage and allowance package is $Au5t124,219.

Mr Tuxworth receives an extra sAust9Boo in office allowances, plus SAn«H 5.500

to services his vast Harkly electorate (240,000 sq km with 2500 voters.) This takes his total wage and aEowance package to sAustlls,9oo, but his base wage and allowance package clearly outstrips those declared for all State Premiers. The Queensland premier, Sir Johannes Bjelke Petersen, has a base wage of sAustB6,ols, While the N.S.W. Premier, Mr Neville Wran, receives sAustBl,292. All other Premiers are paid marginally more or less than sAustBo,ooo. In accord with their status as the riches parUamentarians in the land the N.T. poEticians also decided this week to build a new sAust3o million ParEament House. This was the last item of business before ParEament was prorogued until next year because of the Federal Election. The N.T. Legislative Assembly is regarded by most of the veteran Government members with indifference. This was never more evident than recently when the Assembly was due to begin a three-day sitting. The Government, however, used its 19-6 majority to move a special adjournment motion to restrict the session to a one-day affair the nineteenth time ParEament had convened this year. Parliament normally sits an average 25 days in the year. , The marathon 13-hour sitting which ensued provided triose members who remained sufficient time to

pass the 1984-85 Budget, vote on the new Parliament House, participate in a truncated debate on the Government’s compulsory acquisition of the two N.T. casinos and say goodbye to the outgoing Chief Miniser, Mr Paul Everingham, who has resigned after 10 years in the ParEament to contest the Federal Election. At one stage the Government members had to be called back into the Chamber to maintain the quorum of 10.