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MP's salaries has always been a contentious issue, and there have been much newspaper coverage, scandal and suspicion about the money that Members of Parliament receive.
Due to the problems this has caused, IPSA (Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority) held public consultations to decide the future of MP's pay and pension to focus on a more open, honest and transparent scheme.
IPSA has decided that salaries for MPs from 2015 will be £74,000, index-linked to changes in average earnings across the UK economy, as well as a new pension scheme that will be similar to many others in the public sector.
The organisation has also stated that they will be clamping down on unscrupulous expenses and claims that have dented MP's reputations in recent years. It is hoped that the new fairer system will not only increase transparency, but help to save millions of pounds for the taxpayer.
However, the graph opposite will show a huge 10.3% rise in salary, which has been widely criticised, including from ministers themselves. In 2013 all three major party leaders voiced their opposition to the changes in salary, saying that the timing of the pay rise was inappropriate, due to austerity measures. Despite the 'inappropriate' rise, IPSA claims that MP salaries have 'fallen behind in recent years, and a substantial "one-off" rise is justified'. They also claim that it is due to some allowances being scrapped.
Nevertheless, at £74,000 per annum, MP's salaries will still be almost three times higher than the average UK salary of £26,910*.
The pension scheme for MPs is the Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund (PCPF).
Employee Contribution rates from 1 April 2012 are 1/40th accrual: 13.75%, 1/50th accrual: 9.75%, or 1/60th accrual: 7.75% of pensionable salary.
Source: www.parliament.uk
More information about the new MPs' pay and pensions scheme are available at the IPSA website.
| Date | Basic salary | Change (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Apr 2015 | £74000 | ▲10.3 |
| Apr 2014 | £67060 | ▲1.1 |
| Apr 2013 | £66300 | ▲0.9 |
| Apr 2010 | £65738 | ▲1.5 |
| Apr 2009 | £64766 | ▲4.8 |
| Nov 2007 | £61820 | ▲1.0 |
| Apr 2007 | £61181 | ▲1.5 |
| Nov 2006 | £60277 | ▲1.0 |
| Apr 2006 | £59686 | ▲1.0 |
| Apr 2005 | £59095 | ▲2.8 |
| Apr 2004 | £57485 | ▲2.0 |
| Apr 2003 | £56358 | ▲2.2 |
| Apr 2002 | £55118 | ▲6.4 |
| Jun 2001 | £51822 | ▲4.0 |
| Apr 2001 | £49822 | ▲3.0 |
| Apr 2000 | £48371 | ▲2.9 |
| Apr 1999 | £47008 | ▲4.3 |
| Apr 1998 | £45066 | ▲2.7 |
| Apr 1997 | £43860 | ▲2.0 |
| Jul 1996 | £43000 | ▲26.1 |
| Jan 1996 | £34085 |
Source: Wikipedia
| Major occupation group | Men | Women | All |
|---|---|---|---|
| All | £28,912 | £23,858 | £26,910 |
| Managers, directors and senior officials | £42,702 | £33,883 | £39,785 |
| Professional occupations | £39,260 | £34,070 | £36,566 |
| Associate professional and technical occupations | £32,484 | £26,988 | £30,285 |
| Administrative and secretarial occupations | £22,714 | £19,984 | £20,779 |
| Skilled trades occupations | £25,288 | £17,956 | £24,757 |
| Caring, leisure and other service occupations | £19,261 | £16,926 | £17,508 |
| Sales and customer service occupations | £17,940 | £16,718 | £17,222 |
| Process, plant and machine operatives | £23,400 | £16,942 | £22,677 |
| Elementary occupations | £18,720 | £14,794 | £17,493 |
* Average UK salaries were released provisionally by the Office of National Statistics on 12th December 2013, and represent the latest information available.
Table source: Office for National Statistics
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