Show them the money! Quebec MNAs should get $30,000 pay bump, committee says

Should Premier François Legault, government ministers, and every other member of the national assembly be making more money?

A committee mandated to look into that question says the answer is yes.

According to a new report, they should be given an approximately $30,000 salary increase.

That may sound like an astronomical raise to some, but the committee says it’s totally justified, and that the current salaries make no sense.

“It’s not logical,” said former MNA Lise Thériault, one of the committee members. “If we want to have good MNAs who bring different perspectives, it’s really important to pay them justly.”

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The committee made up of Thériault, fellow former MNA Martin Ouellet and HR expert Jérôme Côté was mandated to take a deep dive into MNA salaries and whether they should go up.

Including their expense budget, the base annual salary for an MNA right now is $139,745 dollars. In its new report, the committee says that number should go up to $169, 950. It would be an increase of about $30,000 per year.

“We’ve put a lot of emphasis in the report about the job of an MNA,” said Côté “I think there aren’t a lot of people in the public that really know what it is all about.”

The committee says salaries need to be high enough to attract top talent. MNA pay was last reviewed about 20 years ago.

“The average salary for a Quebec person has moved up 35% in the last ten years,” said Côté. “For MNAs, it’s 15%.“

Thériault explained that because of social media, MNAs are a lot more accessible to the public, giving them a lot more work. They’re also increasingly answering messages outside business hours.

“The social media asks a lot of time of the MNA,” she said.

Thériault also explained that MNAs are facing more threats than ever before, adding to the danger of the job.

“There’s no way this compensation makes sense with what these people bring and the type of service that they provide,” said Côté.

The committee explained that elected officials make less money than many public servants. Some political attachés, advisors or international delegates have higher salaries, which they don’t see as fair.

Though Quebec MNAs already make more money than their counterparts in Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia, the committee still believes an increase is justifiable.

“The Quebec government has some responsibilities that are not the same in other provinces,” said Côté, also citing Quebec’s different tax regime.

Under the current rules MNAs themselves must vote on whether or not they get the increase. None advocated for an increase.

“I had no recent thoughts on my salary,” said PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.

READ MORE: Heated committee meeting sees Alberta cut MLA pay by 5% and 10% for premier

“It’s not a question that I’m asking myself,” said interim Liberal leader Marc Tanguay.

Québec solidaire came out opposed to the increase, calling for a completely independent review and implementation process.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation says with Quebecers facing steep cost of living increases, and other provincial legislatures rejecting salary increases, the raise should not happen.

“We hope that the politicians understand that right now is not the right moment to ask taxpayers for more money,” said Canadian Taxpayers Federation Quebec Director Nicolas Gagnon.

He cited sharp property tax increases and hydro rate increases as other reasons for MNAs to reject the increase.

“We have witnessed, for example, a situation in British Columbia and in Nova Scotia where politicians had the opportunity to raise their salary, but they did the opposite. Instead, they either freezed or reduce their salaries,” Gagnon said.

A spokesperson for premier legault said the CAQ will discuss the committee’s findings internally before reacting.

Like Québec solidaire, economy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon suggested a third party should decide instead of MNAs.