The House of Commons has stated that increasing the salary of a New Brunswick MP was necessary under legislation, regardless of the MP’s desire to decline the raise. In a recent affidavit submitted to the Federal Court, House clerk Eric Janse emphasized that all Members of Parliament must receive the specified amounts outlined in the law, and deviating from this would be both unlawful and impractical.
Miramichi-Grand Lake Conservative MP Mike Dawson had sought a judicial review in June to prevent Parliament from granting him an $8,800 salary increase. Janse, in response, filed an affidavit last month, asserting that the sessional allowance for the applicant must be paid in accordance with the Parliament of Canada Act and its annual adjustments.
Granting Dawson the option to reject the raise would necessitate special administrative actions by House staff to calculate and maintain a separate sessional allowance for him every year. The base salary for MPs was $208,900 last year and increased to $217,700 on April 1, following a formula tied to private-sector wage growth.
Dawson, expressing concerns about the economic challenges faced by many Canadians, believes it is inappropriate to accept the raise. As a business owner, he highlighted the simplicity of deducting federal taxes from employee wages and criticized the complexity surrounding this issue.
Despite donating his raise to charity, Dawson advocates for the ability to outright refuse the increase. House of Commons Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia and Janse declined interviews on the matter, with further legal arguments anticipated to be submitted within the next two months.
