Australia’s newest ministers are in for big pay rises following Labor’s landslide election win – including some still in their thirties.
Anthony Albanese is the highest paid around the Cabinet table at $607,516, followed by his deputy Richard Marles on $479,003 and Treasurer Jim Chalmers on $438,113, although these salaries are unchanged from their previous term.
But the biggest pay rises went to new Melbourne-based ministers moving from the backbench on Tuesday, as they were sworn in by Governor-General Sam Mostyn.
New Outer Ministers (One Step Below Cabinet) These MPs have been promoted from the backbench to the outer ministry, increasing their base salaries by 57.5%, from $233,660 to $368,015:
Sam Rae (38) – New Minister for Aged Care and Seniors; previously Labor’s Victorian state secretary, now Australia’s youngest minister.
Daniel Mulino – Economist with a PhD from Yale; appointed Assistant Treasurer and Financial Services Minister.
Jess Walsh – Former union leader now Minister for Early Childhood Education and Youth.
Anthony Albanese is the highest paid around the Cabinet table at $607,516
Australia’s newest ministers are in for big pay rises following Labor’s landslide election win
New cabinet ministers on $403,064, marking a 9.5% rise from outer ministry salary of $368,015
High-profile women have moved into the 23-member cabinet from the outer ministry.
Anne Aly – Former academic and Perth-based MP, now has the International Development, Multicultural Affairs and Small Business portfolios.
Anika Wells (39) – Brisbane-based MP is moving into Cabinet with the Communications portfolio, adding this to Sport but dropping aged care, making her the youngest Cabinet minister.
New cabinet minister on $403,064 getting 38% pay rise from $292,075 as an assistant minister
Tim Ayres – A senator for NSW is the new Industry, Innovation and Science Minister, replacing Husic.
New Assistant Ministers getting $292,075 salary
Rebecca White – Former Tasmanian Opposition Leader Rebecca White becomes the Assistant Minister for Heath, Aged Care and Women as a first-term federal MP.
Melbourne-based backbenchers Sam Rae (left), Daniel Mulino and Jess Walsh were the big winners from Anthony Albanese ‘s reshuffle and will see their base pay soar by 57.5 per cent from $233,660 to $368,015 after being sworn in by Governor-General Sam Mostyn (right) in Canberra on Tuesday afternoon
Anne Aly, a Perth-based MP from the Left, now has the International Development, Multicultural Affairs and Small Business portfolios, making her Australia’s first female Muslim cabinet minister, after serving in the outer ministry in the early childhood education and youth portfolios
Andrew Charlton – Parramatta-based economist moves from backbench to new role of Cabinet Secretary and Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy.
Peter Khalil – Melbourne-based MP is the Assistant Minister for Defence.
Josh Wilson – Member for Fremantle is the new Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy.
Reshuffled Cabinet ministers keeping $403,064 salary
Tanya Plibersek – High profile former environment minister from Sydney moves to Social Services portfolio, putting her in charge of Centrelink payments from JobSeeker for the unemployed to the Age Pension, Youth Allowance and parenting benefits.
Amanda Rishworth – Adelaide MP moves from social services to Employment and Workplace Relations.
Michelle Rowland – Western Sydney MP becomes the new Attorney-General after serving as the previous communications minister in charge of a misinformation and disinformation bill that was dropped last year.
Senior ministers earn $438,113
Penny Wong – Adelaide-based Foreign Minister Penny Wong is also the Leader of Government in the Senate with a senior portfolio.
Chalmers – Brisbane-based Treasurer earns the same.
Next rung minister on $408,905
Katy Gallagher – The Canberra-based Finance Minister is also the Manager of Government Business in the Senate.
Backbenchers get a base salary of $233,660
The Remuneration Tribunal determines the base pay of federal MPs every year, along with loadings for senior Cabinet ministers, junior ministers, assistant ministers and those who head parliamentary committees.
New pay rises for all MPs come into effect in July, flowing through to backbenchers all the way up to the PM.
But the loading formula for ministers remains the same.
Others
Josh Burns – Melbourne-based MP Josh Burns has been appointed a Special Envoy for Social Housing and Homelessness.
Unlike assistant ministers, he doesn’t get a 25 per cent loading on top of a backbencher’s base salary of $233,660.
Former ministers suffer 42% pay cut, seeing salaries fall from $403,064 down to $233,660
Rae and Mulino went to the ministry after Marles, as a senior Right faction figure, orchestrated the dumping of former industry minister Ed Husic and former attorney-general Mark Dreyfus from Cabinet.
