EditorSENEDD ELECTION: Your new MS will earn £79,817 a year — and the First Minister’s salary tops £174,000
Whoever wins a seat in Thursday’s Senedd election will pick up a salary of £79,817 in their first year – a rise of more than £3,000 on the current rate, and more than £12,000 higher than it was in 2021.
The figure has been confirmed by the Independent Remuneration Board of the Senedd, which sets pay for Members independently of the Senedd itself.
The 4.5% increase for 2026/27 – worth around £3,400 – is linked to annual changes in average Welsh earnings as published by the Office for National Statistics each November.
It means Senedd Members will earn nearly £80,000 a year from the moment they take their seats after Thursday’s election.
Those who take on additional roles will earn more on top of that base salary.
The biggest earner in the new Senedd will be whoever becomes First Minister.
The First Minister receives an additional salary of £94,783 on top of the base – taking their total pay to £174,600 for the seventh Senedd term.
That’s an increase of more than £25,000 in the First Minister’s total package since 2020/21.
The Llywydd – the Presiding Officer of the Senedd – will receive an additional £51,132 on top of the base salary, bringing their total to £130,949.
Government ministers, deputy ministers, committee chairs, group leaders and others who hold additional roles will also receive top-up salaries reflecting their additional responsibilities.
One rule applies across the board – a Member who holds more than one additional office will only receive one additional salary, and it will be the highest of those roles.
Dr Elizabeth Haywood, chair of the Independent Remuneration Board, said Members played a vital role in Welsh democracy. “We provide staffing and business costs so they are able to do their job in holding the government to account, making Welsh laws, agreeing Welsh taxes and engaging with and representing their constituents,” she said.
She said the board’s decisions sought to maintain accountability and represent value for money. “Set in the context of the wider financial circumstances of Wales,” she added.
The board published its full determination on Members’ pay, staffing and business support for 2026/27 on its website at remunerationboard.wales.
Polls open across Wales at 7am on Thursday and close at 10pm, with the count and results expected on Friday.
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