Senior Tories campaign for doubling of MPs' pay

COLIN BROWN

Chief Political Correspondent

A campaign to double MPs' salaries to more than pounds 60,000 a year was gaining momentum last night in the wake of the Commons vote to disclose their outside earnings.

The campaign threatens to put MPs' pay back on the agenda early in the next session of Parliament, which begins with the State Opening of Parliament next week.

MPs are angry that their pay rise is being held to a below-inflation 2.7 per cent from next January and want to secure big increases before the general election to avoid MPs in the next Parliament having to vote their own pay increases.

The Government has urged restraint, but the mood among Tory backbenchers is now growing strongly in favour of substantial increases to catch up with the private sector. Their determination to increase their parliamentary salaries has been reinforced by the loss of lucrative consultancies as a result of the decision to open up their other earnings to scrutiny.

The widely respected former Treasury minister, Sir Terence Higgins, who is leading the campaign, said MPs' pay should be doubled and ministerial salaries trebled to more than pounds 120,000 a year.

Sir Terence, who has announced his intention to stand down at the next election, is winning strong support from Tory colleagues. Allan Stewart, another former minister, threw his weight behind the campaign.

"If you look at the figures, over the past 30 years average incomes in real terms have risen by 80 per cent; MPs pay has remained steady in real terms and ministerial pay has fallen quite sharply.

"I think there is a problem. I think the British public would like to see openness about outside earnings, which I voted for, but an increase in pay to reflect the importance of the job," Mr Stewart said. However, the MPs supporting a substantial increase in their pay are not in favour of accepting a big rise in return for stopping all outside earnings.

MPs agreed to link their salaries to a grade of senior civil servant to avoid the embarrassment of voting their own pay increases. But they have become increasingly dissatisfied with their rises, which have been held down as a result of the Treasury squeeze on public sector pay.

The next increases are automatically triggered on 1 January but Tory MPs may seek to force a vote to register their protests. They complain that American congressmen receive the equivalent of pounds 82,000; Italian MPs get pounds 76,410 and French MPs earn pounds 54,000.

The 2.7 per cent increase will raise an MP's salary from pounds 33,189 to pounds 34,085 - an increase of pounds 17.23 a week. Cabinet ministers' salaries will rise from pounds 67,819 to pounds 69,650 - an increase of pounds 35.21 a week.