James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

Earlier this year, the Prime Minister announced that Samantha Mostyn would take up the reins as Australia's 28th Governor-General from 1 July 2024, following on from the announced retirement of His Excellency General the Hon. David Hurley. Section 3 of chapter 1 of the Australian Constitution requires that:

The salary of a Governor-General shall not be altered during his continuance in office.

It is pertinent that the Governor-General Amendment (Salary) Bill 2024 was legislated prior to Ms Mostyn's swearing in as Australia's 28th Governor-General next Monday. It's a longstanding practice that the Governor-General's salary is set slightly above the expected average annual salary of the Chief Justice of the High Court over the notional five-year term. The coalition will provide passage for this bill to ensure that this practice can be met.