There are less than three weeks left for members of the public to respond to IPSA’s consultation on proposals for MPs’ pay for the remainder of this Parliament.
Last month, IPSA convened a Citizens’ Forum on MPs’ pay and funding where a representative sample of the UK population put forward recommendations for IPSA to consider.
Some of the Forum’s main recommendations, such as that MPs’ pay should be benchmarked against comparable roles in the UK and linked to national average household incomes, have been reflected in the consultation.
The Forum members concluded that the level of pay for MPs is mostly right, but asked for more accountability and transparency.
Opinions on pay shifted significantly for members of the Forum.
Before the Forum, 65% of members thought MPs were paid too much. After deliberation, 67% viewed MPs’ pay as about right – reflecting deeper understanding of the role’s demand and complexities.
Richard Lloyd, IPSA’s Chair, said:
“We believe MPs should be paid fairly for the important role they have in democracy.
“We are grateful to the 23 members of our Citizens’ Forum for the time they took to debate a complex and divisive topic.
“Now it’s over to the rest of the British public. I encourage everyone to read our consultation with an open mind and share your views about how IPSA might fund and pay MPs in the future”.
The consultation is open until 31 October.
