Filipe Amorim / Lusa
The Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro.
Prime Minister has the eighth lowest salary among heads of government in 30 European countries: he earns 345% of the average Portuguese salary.
Prime Minister Luís Montenegro’s salary is the eighth lowest among government leaders from 30 European countries, including those from the European Union, the United Kingdom, Norway, Iceland and Switzerland.
According to an analysis of data from Instituto +Liberdade, the prime minister’s gross annual salary is around 82 thousand eurosrepresenting only two thirds of the average of the states analyzed. This value corresponds to approximately 345% of the average salary in Portugalplacing it above countries like Italy, but far below Switzerland, where the income of a government leader reaches 255 thousand euros per year.
The discrepancy between the salaries of political leaders and those in the private sector in Portugal is evident. For example, an executive director of a large national company earns, on average, more than R$90 thousand per month, while an executive director of these companies receives around R$50 thousand per month.
Quality and responsibility count
The issue of salaries in politics is associated with the quality of the political class. André Pinção Lucas, director of Instituto +Liberdade, tells JN that it is difficult to attract highly qualified professionals from the private sector to political positions due to the combination of low income and intense public exposure.
Despite being an “unpopular” idea, it is argued that Portuguese political leaders are underpaid given the responsibilities and demands of their positions.
The discussion about political salaries gained strength with recent episodes, such as taking on the role of Secretary General of the Government due to the reduced salary of 15 thousand euros per year.
