Faroe Islands committee recommends official ministerial cars for Prime Minister and Cabinet members

In a move to align with practices in other countries, it has been proposed that the Prime Minister and members of the Cabinet in the Faroe Islands should also have access to an official ministerial car. This recommendation comes from a committee tasked with reviewing the salaries and pensions of the Prime Minister and Cabinet members.

The committee has suggested two changes. Firstly, it recommends that an official ministerial car be made available to the Prime Minister and Cabinet members. Secondly, all salary income should be deducted from any severance pay if that pay is provided for a period longer than three months.

The issue of providing ministerial cars is not new; a similar recommendation was made in a report from 2015, but it was not implemented at that time. The committee has looked into how neighboring countries handle this matter.

In Greenland, Cabinet members are provided with a free car without a driver and are taxed in the same manner as other employees who have a company car. Meanwhile, in Iceland, Denmark, and Norway, Cabinet members enjoy access to a ministerial car with a driver, and this arrangement is tax-exempt for official duties. The current proposal suggests that the ministerial car should replace the current compensation for travel expenses.

The Prime Minister’s monthly salary is currently 97,087 DKK, while Cabinet members earn approximately 82,150 DKK. The committee has evaluated these salaries in relation to overall salary levels in Faroese society and determined them to be reasonable.

In the private sector, 234 individuals earn over 80,000 DKK per month, while 113 individuals in the public sector exceed that threshold. The decision now rests with the Prime Minister to determine if any changes should be implemented.