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Penny Wong will pocket the same salary as the prime minister for the first time while filling in as leader of the country after a sudden rule change by the independent body that handles the pay rates of key Commonwealth offices, including politicians and judges.
The foreign minister has been elevated to the top salary this week by the Remuneration Tribunal’s ruling while Anthony Albanese is in Palau for the Pacific Islands Forum and deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles is in the United States and Britain on defence business.
The new rule was buried in the tribunal’s latest report on ministerial salaries, published on the tribunal’s website as coming into effect on August 25 this year. It ruled any minister who serves as acting prime minister should now be paid at the same annual rate as the prime minister. Previously, only the deputy prime minister was paid a higher wage while acting in the role.
As the nation’s highest-paid politician, Albanese’s annual salary is $622,102, made up of the $239,270 parliamentary base salary plus a $382,832 loading (160 per cent of the base salary) for serving as prime minister. The additional salary is separate from parliamentary allowances, entitlements and expenses.
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Wong, as leader of the government in the Senate, normally earns $448,631, including a $209,361 loading on top of the parliamentary base salary.
The new ruling means she would receive the prime minister’s higher loading for the four days she is acting in the role – from Monday to Thursday. The difference between the two loadings is $173,471 a year, translating into about $1900 extra before tax.
A spokeswoman for the tribunal was at pains to reject any suggestion the rule had been written for Wong while she was on higher duties.
In a statement, it said the recommendation was “not related to, or timed to coincide with, Senator Wong’s appointment as acting prime minister”.
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The tribunal said it had considered the issue as part of its annual review and that the recommendation “was not made in response to a request from the Prime Minister’s Office or the government”.
She said the tribunal provided its 2026 report to Finance Minister Katy Gallagher on July 1 before it was tabled in parliament and published on August 25.
The tribunal is required to report on ministerial salaries at least once a year. The three-member tribunal is chaired by corporate director Holly Kramer, whose board portfolio includes ANZ, Fonterra and Telstra. Veteran investment adviser Heather Zampatti and property executive Stephen Conry are the other members.
Wong’s temporary promotion comes under arrangements signed by Albanese after the federal election last May for the exercise of his powers when he is absent from Australia or unable to perform his duties.
Those arrangements put Marles, as deputy prime minister, first in line, followed by Wong if he is unavailable, then Treasurer Jim Chalmers, Gallagher as finance minister and Trade Minister Don Farrell.
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The need for an acting prime minister when the leader is overseas has become less critical now that the RAAF jets they travel on have internet connection and secure communication systems. The role was traditionally vital when prime ministers were at sea to travel to Europe last century and often uncontactable for weeks.
Both the prime minister’s and Wong’s offices were contacted for comment.
In 2017, amid a Coalition fight over who should be acting prime minister when Malcolm Turnbull was overseas and his deputy, Barnaby Joyce, was ruled ineligible to sit in parliament over his citizenship status, Turnbull said he was still making the decisions while away.
“The acting prime minister is a role that is really designed to cover circumstances where, for example, it was urgent for a document to be signed with my consent … but I’m not in the country to sign it.”
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Rob Harris is the national correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age based in Canberra. He is a former Europe correspondent.Connect via email.AdvertisementAdvertisement