MSPs in line for 1.8% pay rise next year
- Published
Scottish government ministers, including the first minister, will continue with a voluntary pay freeze, tying salaries to their 2008/09 level
MSPs are to be given a 1.8% pay rise next year - taking the first minister's entitlement to more than 拢150,000.
The increase means Nicola Sturgeon's salary entitlement would rise to 拢151,269. The UK prime minister is currently paid 拢149,440 a year.
Scottish cabinet secretaries will get 拢108,203, and backbench MSPs 拢61,777.
The Scottish government confirmed Ms Sturgeon and her ministers will continue with a voluntary pay freeze tying salaries to their 2008/09 level.
The extra cash will be put into a public spending fund.
The Scottish Parliamentary salaries scheme now directly links MSPs' salaries to public-sector pay rises in Scotland using the annual survey of hours and earnings published by the Office for National Statistics.
Non-MSP staff
Conservative MSP Jackson Carlaw, a member of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, told the Finance and Constitution Committee on Wednesday: "Using this index, I can confirm that an increase of 1.8% will be applied in April 2017."
The committee was told that non-MSP staff working directly for the parliament would get "about the same" as the 1.8% rise.
The corporate body's submission to the committee said the pay boost for MSPs is expected to cost a total of 拢200,000 as not all members are expected to claim the full entitlement.
Historically, MSPs were paid 87.5% of an MP's wage but Holyrood voted to scrap this scheme in 2015 in favour of the new system after agreeing it would be "politically unthinkable" to accept the 9% increase then on the table.
A spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives said party leader Ruth Davidson would increase her private charitable donations commensurately with the increase, as she did last year.