A SCOTTISH National Party minister has claimed her 23 per cent salary hike is “not a pay rise” while some of the lowest paid public-sector workers in Scotland prepare to strike to reverse pay cuts. 

Social care minister Maree Todd, who  – along with junior ministerial colleagues — will rake in an extra £19,126 to total £100,575 next year, as cabinet secretaries see their salaries soar to £116,125.

She told BBC Radio Scotland: “It’s not a pay rise, it won’t cost the public purse a penny extra, and I think it’s very important that people understand that.”