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Brown set to oppose MP pay rise | Brown set to oppose MP pay rise |
(about 2 hours later) | |
Prime Minister Gordon Brown will oppose an above inflation pay rise for MPs, according to Downing Street sources. | Prime Minister Gordon Brown will oppose an above inflation pay rise for MPs, according to Downing Street sources. |
Reports suggest the Senior Salaries Review body has recommended a rise of nearly 1% above inflation. | Reports suggest the Senior Salaries Review body has recommended a rise of nearly 1% above inflation. |
Mr Brown is said to oppose this, but some MPs say their pay has fallen behind. MPs will have the final say in the Commons. | Mr Brown is said to oppose this, but some MPs say their pay has fallen behind. MPs will have the final say in the Commons. |
Glyn Travis, of the Prison Officers Association, said such a pay rise would be outrageous. | Glyn Travis, of the Prison Officers Association, said such a pay rise would be outrageous. |
He told BBC Radio Four's The World at One: "Public sector workers pay has fallen behind since 2001, way before MPs have alleged that their pay had fallen behind similar workers. | He told BBC Radio Four's The World at One: "Public sector workers pay has fallen behind since 2001, way before MPs have alleged that their pay had fallen behind similar workers. |
"What the MPs need to do is look at the public sector workforce and see what sort of pay they're getting for the jobs they do." | "What the MPs need to do is look at the public sector workforce and see what sort of pay they're getting for the jobs they do." |
The prime minister has urged pay restraint across the public sector. | The prime minister has urged pay restraint across the public sector. |
The last thing the prime minister wants is for MPs to be seen awarding themselves an over-generous rise Reeta ChakrabartiBBC Political Correspondent | The last thing the prime minister wants is for MPs to be seen awarding themselves an over-generous rise Reeta ChakrabartiBBC Political Correspondent |
The findings of the Senior Salaries Review Body, the independent body which makes pay recommendations for MPs, have not yet been made public. | The findings of the Senior Salaries Review Body, the independent body which makes pay recommendations for MPs, have not yet been made public. |
However, leaked reports suggesting a 2.8% increase in April, and further increases amounting to nearly 10% over three years, were described as "broadly accurate" by a Downing Street source. | However, leaked reports suggesting a 2.8% increase in April, and further increases amounting to nearly 10% over three years, were described as "broadly accurate" by a Downing Street source. |
The source went on to say that Gordon Brown would oppose such a rise - although the ultimate say goes to MPs. | The source went on to say that Gordon Brown would oppose such a rise - although the ultimate say goes to MPs. |
They will have a free vote in the Commons on the issue. | They will have a free vote in the Commons on the issue. |
But Labour backbencher John Spellar suggested MPs were more deserving of the recommendation. | But Labour backbencher John Spellar suggested MPs were more deserving of the recommendation. |
He told the BBC MPs pay had fallen behind equivalent earnings and also inflation in recent years. | He told the BBC MPs pay had fallen behind equivalent earnings and also inflation in recent years. |
And Stephen Pound, Labour MP for Ealing North, said MPs deserved the award. | |
In the trough? | |
"I would like there to be just some fairness and some sort of reasonable attitude instead of everybody coming out of the woodwork and saying, if MPs want to have a two-and-a-half per cent, they've got their snouts in the trough," he said. | |
Mr Pound went on: "I've never ever, in the time I've been an MP, done less than a 14-hour day. I think we work pretty damn hard for what we get." | |
BBC Political Correspondent Reeta Chakrabarti outlined Mr Brown's stance, as well as the likely reasons behind his position. | |
Our correspondent said: "With the police up in arms over their 1.9% pay deal, the last thing the prime minister wants is for MPs to be seen awarding themselves an over-generous rise." | |
She added that, according to Downing Street sources, Mr Brown is "opposed to this - MPs have to set an example and they have to live in the real world." | She added that, according to Downing Street sources, Mr Brown is "opposed to this - MPs have to set an example and they have to live in the real world." |
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