Assistant minister diaries: Premier Steven Miles set to make high-paid diaries public in bold move
Queenslanders will at last be given insight into the workloads undertaken by eight assistant ministers that earns them $93k payrises, in a bold move under the Miles government. But the Opposition is already calling for more.
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Queenslanders will finally see what Queensland’s eight assistant ministers do to earn the $90,000 they’re paid, with Premier Steven Miles moving to make their diaries public, but the LNP is already calling for more disclosure.
Mr Miles will on Thursday announce the diaries of the government’s eight assistant ministers and the LNP’s 18 shadow ministers will be released monthly.
It follows a campaign by The Courier-Mail, started while Annastacia Palaszczuk was premier, to reveal what work the assistant ministers do for the $93,715 they are paid on top of the $176,909 salary earned as a member of parliament.
While Ms Palaszczuk refused to make the diaries public – as ministers’ diaries were – but Mr Miles has acted.
“I’ve said my government will be open and transparent with Queenslanders, that’s why we will release assistant minister diaries, as happens with the diaries of all ministers,” Mr Miles said.
“Assistant ministers have an important role to play in supporting the development and implementation of our government’s policies.”
Diary extracts will be published in line with minister diary extracts, starting with the publication of the February 2024 extract which will occur in March 2024.
Highly-paid chairs of parliamentary committees should also be made to publish their diaries, under a push by the Opposition.
The state government is set to push through operational changes which would require assistant ministers and shadow ministers to publish their diaries each month, just like cabinet minister do.
At a minimum, the diaries must include the date of a meeting, name of organisation or person, purpose of the meeting, any meeting with a registered lobbyist or any person working for a lobbyist in any capacity.
Deputy Opposition Leader Jarrod Bleijie is pushing for most committee chairs, which now include former Transport Minister Mark Bailey, should also be made to publish their diaries.
Mr Bleijie also warned the administrative burden on the Opposition, which has significantly less manpower at its disposal than the government, to publish shadow minister diaries would be significant.
“A shadow minister is not under ministerial services. They don’t get the support of ministerial services. It’s their electorate officers that will be tasked with administrative burden now of going through the ministerial diaries and publication on the parliament’s website,” he said.
“It’s going to be the electorate officers of the shadow ministers, taking time away from serving constituents now in doing diary publication.
“So what would have been great for the government to do if there was serious about openness and transparency is looking at the resources attached to this.”
Mr Miles has also written to Opposition Leader David Crisafulli, noting his previous comments about having “no issue” with the diaries of shadow ministers being made public.
“The government welcomes this feedback and this week a motion will be moved in the Legislative Assembly of the Queensland Parliament to give effect to this,” the premier wrote.
“In addition, the Opposition Handbook will be updated to reflect that in addition to the Leader of the Opposition and their chief of staff, the deputy leader of the opposition will be required also to publish their diary extract on a monthly basis.”
The Opposition will support the government’s changes and will comply with the directions.
The new measures will start from March 2024, with the first publication of diary extracts in April 2024.
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