London, Mar. 24, (PA Media/dpa/GNA) – Members of the British Parliament will see their salaries increase by 2.8% to £93,904 ($121,349) in the next financial year, which starts April 1, parliament’s expenses watchdog has confirmed.
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) said the decision was in line with wider government pay recommendations for public sector workers.
Under the Parliamentary Standards Act, IPSA is required to review MPs’ salaries by early July within the first year of a new parliament.
The watchdog said it would hold a further consultation on the determination of MPs’ pay for the rest of the current parliamentary term in the coming months.
The increase takes an MP’s salary to £93,904, up from £91,346, and is slightly below the current inflation rate of 3%.
At the start of the last parliament, in 2019, annual pay stood at £79,468.
MPs do not determine their own salaries, which have been set by IPSA since the watchdog was created in 2009 in the wake of the expenses scandal.
IPSA chairman Richard Lloyd said the body aims to “make fair decisions on pay, both for MPs and the public” after the increase was first proposed in February.
The watchdog is independent of parliament and the government and considers a range of metrics when deciding on pay, including national statistics on average earnings in the public sector and the wider economic climate.
It comes ahead of the spring statement on Wednesday, in which the UK finance minister or chancellor is expected to announce spending cuts as she seeks to balance the books amid disappointing growth figures and higher-than-expected borrowing.
Last year, the watchdog recommended an inflation-busting 5.5% increase to MPs’ pay, lifting basic salaries to £91,346 from £86,584.