MP salaries are 4.3 times the average income of the wealthiest

With the announcement of June inflation, the fact that the salaries of members of parliament, who are also retirees, rose to 512 thousand liras took top billing in newspaper and television reports. This is a figure nearly 18 times the minimum wage and nearly 22 times the lowest pension. This comparison is correct but incomplete. I will explain the details below. At the same time, the salary of an MP who is also a retiree is 4.3 times the average monthly income of the wealthiest 20 percent of the population... I am not saying this, TÜİK is. 

Generally, one looks at how many times the minimum wage the salaries of members of parliament in a country are. In European countries, MP salaries vary between 3 and 5.5 times the minimum wage. I will present this with a separate chart at the end of the article. Comparing MP salaries with the minimum wage is a classic comparison, but it is not sufficient. It is more meaningful if we make the primary comparison from within the society you live in and its averages.

Calculations made with TÜİK data show that the salary of an MP who is also a retiree reaches approximately 4.3 times the average per capita income of not only the average citizen but also the top 20 percent income group in Turkey."

MP salaries leave behind not only the average citizen but also the highest income group, which can be described as the crème de la crème of society, by several times.

We have the minimum wage and the salary of an MP who is also a retiree for the year 2026. However, in contrast, according to TÜİK's income distribution surveys, the latest data is the income distribution statistics announced in December 2025... The data here belongs to the year 2024. The 2025 national income accounts have been announced, but the household income survey will be released at the end of 2026. I could have made an estimate for average income and top group income from the 2025 national income accounts, but in order not to use a different series, I took the average per capita income and the average income of the wealthiest 20 percent of the population for 2024. I took the 2024 minimum wage and the 2024 MP + retired MP salary data. This chart emerged. (For those interested, the source is https://veriportali.tuik.gov.tr/tr/press/53993)

In 2024, the ratio of pension to minimum wage was 16.7 times. It rose to 18.2 times in 2026. I anticipate a deterioration in income distribution for low-income earners in 2025 and 2026 as well, but I do not think there will be a very significant change in the resulting table. Considering that MP salaries rose from 285 thousand liras to 512 thousand liras in the two-year period in question, the high ratios of MP salaries compared to others will continue at these levels. 

MP SALARIES AND MINIMUM WAGE AROUND THE WORLD

We see it very clearly in the chart. In European countries, MP salaries are between 3 and 5 times the minimum wage. In Turkey, it is 18 times with 2025 data and 18 times with 2026 data. 

When viewed in terms of minimum wage, we see that members of parliament in Latin American countries are more privileged than those in Turkey. An MP salary is equal to 30 minimum wages in Colombia, 28 in Brazil, and 20 in Argentina. As an OECD country, Mexico is better off than Turkey; there, an MP receives a salary equal to 15 minimum wages. Since we have been saying for years that Turkey is a part of Europe and since we are still wandering at the gates of the EU, the countries we should compare ourselves to should not be Latin American countries, but European countries...

Looking at all this data, the following questions come to mind:

Is politics a field for serving society in the name of an idea and an ideal, or is it a privileged profession that brings high income?

Of course, being an MP is an important public duty. It is necessary to protect those elected, the parliament, and democracy. However, the issue we are discussing here is not the reputation of being an MP, but the income balance.

Moreover, we observe that the effectiveness of the Parliament and the legislature in Turkey has also weakened significantly. There are strong suspicions in society that MPs do not freely audit on behalf of the public and do not use independent will in legislative processes. The prevailing opinion is that a significant portion of MPs act under the yoke of party leaders and party discipline.

In this case, the problem is not just the high level of salaries. The problem is that while the influence of the Parliament decreases, MP incomes are becoming detached from all income segments of society.

In Turkey, minimum wage earners cannot make ends meet. Retirees are trying to stay afloat. The average citizen is becoming impoverished. Even the average income of the wealthiest 20 percent remains far behind the income of an MP.

Then the question is:

While society is becoming impoverished, can the political class be moved to such a privileged income level? Can a political class that reaches such a privileged income level internalize the troubles of the public and low-income earners and solve their problems?