Qld MPs win massive pay rise A $57,000 pay rise would be the average punter's dream come true, but for Queensland MPs it is a public relations nightmare. The pay rise which will increase MPs base salary to more than $194,000 annually has coincided with Monday's introduction of an electricity price rise that will add $268 to an average household power bill each year. The Crown Solicitor had warned that Queensland MPs current pay was unlawfully low after the Bligh government froze wages in 2009. State MPs are required to earn $500 less each year than their federal counterparts, but the moratorium meant their salaries fell way behind. The Newman government initially said it would do everything to fight the pay rise, but on Monday admitted defeat. Premier Campbell Newman, who is holidaying in Vietnam, did not have to deliver the bad news, which was buried on the third page of a media release, and instead left that task to Acting Premier Jeff Seeney. He said they would make the rise "cost neutral" for taxpayers. Electorate allowance and public funding for political parties will also be halved from this financial year. But no one dare ask for back pay as that could leave the government with a bill in the tens of millions. "I will name and shame people who try to do it," Mr Seeney said. I think that former MPs and existing MPs need to act in good faith. The pay rise couldn't have come at a worse time politically. The Newman government campaigned to lower the cost of living, but from Monday power prices will increase, while the public is still mourning the loss of more than 10,000 public servants. Queensland Council of Unions president John Battams said while he agreed politicians deserved to be well-paid, the rise was hypocritical given the government's constant preaching about austerity. Mr Battams said the government could have found other ways to avoid breaching the legislation without giving themselves a pay rise. "I think most people will see this for what it is, a wage grab," Mr Battams told AAP. Opposition leader Annastacia Palaszczuk hopes no Labor MPs would ask for back pay. "There are families out there hurting, struggling," she said.