Last Updated: Friday, 20 April 2007, 17:46 GMT 18:46 UK
Assembly members' pay set to rise
By Martina Purdy
BBC Northern Ireland political correspondent
Assembly members' pay is going up
Next month, Northern Ireland's assembly members will be working on full powers. And full pay.
All 108 are in line for at least another £10,000 per year. The basic pay on 8 May will rise from about £32,000 to just over £41,000.
Sinn Fein policy, however, is that its members receive no more than the average industrial wage and that apparently means everyone from assembly member to minister gets the same - about £15,000. The rest goes to the party.
But many assembly members will be earning much more than the basic rate. The dozen or so who chair committees will get an extra £10,000 for this, with the deputies earning an extra £5,000.
And there are some who also receive MP's salaries of about £60,000. When this is added to their assembly pay, there is a two thirds reduction in the Stormont pay.
That leaves about £73,000 mininum. A number of MPs, however, are also earning extra as committee chairman and deputy chairman.
The 10 ministers and the speaker will earn about £77,000 - except for MPs Peter Robinson and Nigel Dodds who are entitled to about £110,000.
Of course that puts their salaries within a whisker of the official salary of the First and Deputy First Ministers.
First and deputy first ministers Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness are entitled to about £111,000 a year, when you add their basic pay to their ministerial pay of about £70,000.
Ian Paisley will be the top earner
But as Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness gives most of his to the party, it's the DUP leader who's the biggest earner.
Mr Paisley also gets his Westminster pay, and once adjustments are made, will be paid about £144,000 per annum.
The speaker will earn about £77,000, and the post also comes with a car and driver, just like a minister.
Of course, there is already speculation that pay will be reviewed at Stormont - and that means pay hikes.
But Sinn Fein and the DUP have both moved to dampen the speculation. Sinn Fein says this is premature, while the DUP says there are no plans for a pay review.
But the Senior Salaries Review Board might look into the matter nonetheless.
This independent body would likely recommend a pay rise, based on the fact that its recommended pay rise in 2002 was turned down by the assembly members.
The parties did not believe they could justify a pay rise after the suspensions. Since the suspension of 2002, Stormont pay has fallen behind the regional administrations in Scotland and Wales.
For example, a member of the Scottish Parliament gets a basic salary of £53,000. In Wales, the basic pay is about £46,000.
If it does happen the parties will want to get it out of the way well ahead of the next election.
On the other hand, it will be a matter of judging the public mood - and whether the voters will stomach pay rises just yet.
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