pm pay should be a million says barnaby

ABC Online...
Nationals Senate leader Barnaby Joyce has called for Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's salary to be tripled to $1 million.

Yesterday the Government accepted a remuneration tribunal recommendation to give federal politicians a 3 per cent pay rise.

The Greens say it should be rejected because lowest paid workers are not getting an increase.

But Senator Joyce says politicians should be paid as much as business leaders.

"I'm just stating the commercial reality that we must make sure that the highest office holder in our land should be within sight of the sort of money that they get in the marketplace for running a comparable sized company," he said.

"If you pay people nothing you'd still fill parliament up but you'd fill it up with the sort of people that don't represent what you want."

Senator Joyce also said he "can't see" how the Government's emissions trading scheme could be modified in a way that would get the Nationals on board.

The Opposition is under pressure from the Government to put up amendments to the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS) by October 19 ahead of a second vote on the legislation in November.

Coalition Leader Malcolm Turnbull says he is confident he can get full party room support for amendments despite the Nationals, and some Liberals, opposing the scheme.

Senator Joyce says the Nationals are prepared to look at amendments but he is doubtful any changes will swing the Nationals in favour of the scheme.

"If we can work out a way to make this ridiculous scheme less ridiculous we'll be trying to do that, but I can't see at the end of the day we're going to end up with something we'd support," he told ABC2 News Breakfast.

"It's still an emissions trading scheme which is still just a massive tax that is not going to change the climate.

"We in the National Party believe that this is an extremely bad outcome."

If the Opposition votes down the scheme a second time, the Government will be able to call a double dissolution election.

Speaking from London earlier this week Mr Turnbull said he believed the party room would be able to agree on amendments.

Dave R.