ANAS Sarwar has said it will be “difficult” to reverse a recent pay hike for Scottish Government ministers if he becomes first minister – after criticising the rise.
The Scottish Labour leader, and his deputy Jackie Baillie, were quick to slam First Minister John Swinney when it emerged the freeze on ministerial pay would be partially lifted after 16 years.
Ministers are set to see a boost of almost £20,000 as the MSP element of their pay will be “equalised”. This means junior ministers will see an increase of £19,076 to £100,575, and Cabinet secretaries of £19,126 to £116,125.
Swinney has said he will not accept the pay increase himself.
And now, Sarwar has refused to commit to reverse the pay increase if his party wins the 2026 Holyrood election.
Sarwar, a millionaire, recently said a wealth tax is the “wrong solution” to the issues of economic insecurity and financial inequality facing Scotland and the wider UK.
Asked if he would reverse the pay hike if he becomes first minister, Sarwar said: “It is difficult to talk about reversing decisions.”
He stressed his desire to slim down the size of the Scottish Government, saying: “A more obvious cut to make would be on the size of government, that means the number of ministers, the number of special advisers, the number of spin doctors.”
Following the news of the pay increase, Sarwar posted on his social media accounts: “SNP Ministers rewarded £20,000 for failure.”
Elsewhere, Baillie said: “While Scots are struggling, the SNP Ministers are being rewarded for their failure.
Swinney has 10 Cabinet Secretaries in his Government and 14 other ministers.
Sarwar claimed that the government has “grown exponentially under the SNP”.
“We do want to bring down the cost of government, I can give that commitment to people,” he added.
Speaking as he campaigned ahead of the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election, he added: “I think there is a lot of ministers sitting around, taking the ministerial salary but not doing very much with it.
“I think you can see that in department after department where these ministers think their job is to have the title and not do the work.
“It is going to be difficult to do pay cuts, but in terms of reducing the cost of government, the size of government, the payroll, of course we are going to bring it down.”
The voluntary pay freeze for ministers was introduced in 2009 when Alex Salmond was first minister.
Swinney has previously said the decision to raise ministerial salaries was made out of “fairness”, but he stressed he would not personally benefit.
The Scottish Government has been contacted for comment.
