Here’s How Much Every State Premier Gets Paid If You Wanna Get Boomer-Tier Mad About Yr Taxes

In a curious quirk of Australian politics, Queensland Premier Annastasia Palaszczuk will soon become the second-highest paid state leader, after an independent tribunal approved a string of salary rises for QLD MPs covering the next 12 months. What’s even more curious is that Palaszczuk moving into second place on the leader board knocks Gladys Berejiklian out of the Top 3. Not top two. Top three.

The tribunal’s approval will see three pay rises applied to the salaries of Queensland state MPs. The first, a 2% hike, will be applied in September this year. That will be followed by a 2.25% rise in March 2022, and a further 2.5% pay increase in September of that year.

That pay increase will take the Premier’s salary up from $399,995 per year to around $427,500. That comfortably makes Palaszczuk the second highest-paid Premier in Australia, behind only Dan Andrews‘ hefty salary of $441,439 in Victoria.

Interestingly enough, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian was not the previous occupant of the number two slot. At $407,980, her salary is eclipsed by that of South Australian Premier Stephen Marshall, who commands a reported $418,000 per annum.

Palaszczuk had requested a pay freeze for Queensland MPs last year due to the ongoing economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, however the Queensland Independent Renumeration Tribunal noted yesterday that a pay increase was “now justified for members” due to economic factors stabilising.

For those of you wondering just how much each state and territory leader gets paid, here’s what every state and territory leader currently cops in pay. And a very big and pre-emptive sorry to Tasmania for yet another clear and egregious slight from the mainland here.

Dan Andrews – Victoria: $441,439 (Source)
Annastasia Palaszczuk – Queensland: $427,500 (Source, correct as of September 2022)
Stephen Marshall – South Australia: $418,000 (Source)
Gladys Berejiklian – New South Wales: $407,980 (Source [PDF])
Mark McGowan – Western Australia: $355,681 (Source)
Andrew Barr – Australian Capital Territory: $353,833 (Source)
Michael Gunner – Northern Territory: $325,392 (Source)
Peter Gutwein – Tasmania: $301,397 (Source)

Stephen Marshall pulling in more than Gladys Berejiklian? Look I’m sure Adelaide has its fair share of problems but something about that seems deeply off.

A real case of things being simultaneously far too much and nowhere near enough, to be sure.

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