The country’s 338 members of Parliament are expecting a significant salary increase in April, and most Canadians aren’t happy about it.
According to government information-based estimates by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF), backbench MPs currently earn an annual salary of $203,100. This is well above the Canadian average of $67,282, according to Dundas Life.
Per Statistics Canada’s latest data, the average income from salaries, wages, and commissions stood at $56,300 (median: $44,000) in 2022.
The pay rise kicks in on April 1. Based on contract data published by the federal government, the CTF estimates this would be a 3.2 per cent pay bump. That means MPs would get paid $209,800 — a $6,700 increase.
The CTF is a Saskatchewan-founded advocacy group “dedicated to lower taxes, less waste, and accountable government.”
It shared the results of a Leger poll published on March 5, 2025, showing that 79 per cent (or eight in 10) of Canadians oppose the upcoming MP raise.
A look at Canada’s current federal minimum wage provides context for this resentment.
On April 1, the federal minimum wage will also increase by 2.4 per cent from $17.30 to $17.75 per hour.
Last year in March, we spoke to Ontario Living Wage Network (OLWN) spokesperson Craig Pickthorne about the difference between a minimum wage and a living wage and whether Canada’s standards allow for a livable wage.
“The minimum wage can go up to $18 an hour, and if you’re working full-time, you’d still be unable to live,” he said.
The OLWN is one of many non-profit organizations across Canada that calculates local living wage rates yearly. Pickthorne shared that the NGO considers the current costs of goods, services, shelter, food, transportation, childcare, medical, internet and cellphone plans, and more.
“So, what we get after all that is an amount that someone must earn per hour to make ends meet,” he added. “That’s deeply in contrast to the minimum wage, which is just a number… It’s somewhat arbitrarily set in that it’s what the current government, whoever they may be, thinks that they can get away with and still be on the right side of certain interest groups.”
“The poll results are crystal clear: the vast majority of Canadians don’t think MPs deserve a raise,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF federal director. “It seems like the only Canadians who strongly support an MP pay raise are the politicians themselves.”
Fifty-nine per cent of Canadians who took part in the survey said that they strongly oppose the upcoming MP pay raise. Among Canadians who have decided on the issue, 86 per cent oppose the MP pay raise entirely.
Amid a tariff war, tax hikes, and a cost-of-living crisis, the CTF is demanding an MP wage freeze similar to one that took effect from 2010 to 2013.
“Do MPs really want to pad their pockets with higher pay as they head into an election?” demanded Terrazzano. “If politicians want to be true champions for taxpayers, they must push to stop this MP pay raise.”
MPs aren’t the only ones set to enjoy a pay increase.
Currently, a cabinet minister earns nearly $299,900, and the prime minister gets paid $406,200 annually.
The upcoming increase means ministers could get paid $309,700 (a $9,800 increase), while the prime minister would make $419,600 (a $13,400 pay rise).
We have reached out to Public Services and Procurement Canada for more information.
