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Politics Home Article | Parliamentary Staff Furious Over MPs Getting Bigger Pay Award
Parliamentary staff are outraged by MPs receiving a larger pay increase than them for the next financial year (Alamy)
3 min read
Parliamentary staff are furious over MPs being offered a larger pay increase their employees, despite staff bearing the brunt of increased casework loads.
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) announced on Monday that MPs’ basic salary will rise by 5 per cent to £98,599 a year from April, while also aiming to move towards a salary of around £110,000 by the end of the Parliament, due in 2029. The MPs’ pay decision for 2026-27 includes a 1.5 per cent benchmarking adjustment, as well as a 3.5 per cent cost-of-living increase.
IPSA chairman Richard Lloyd said the role of an MP had “evolved”, with parliamentarians “dealing with higher levels of complex casework, and abuse and intimidation”.
However, MPs’ staff are only being offered an ‘optional’ 3.5 per cent pay increase, despite months of lobbying by the trade union and some MPs for a substantial rise in staffing budgets due to low pay and unsustainable workloads.
One parliamentary staffer, granted anonymity to speak freely, called IPSA “a bunch of useless bean-counting morons”.
“I can’t tell you the level of fury among MPs’ staff about this announcement from IPSA,” they said.
They called the decision to raise MPs’ salaries to nearly £100k to include a “cost of living” increase “mind-blowingly tone deaf”.
“It’s staggeringly incompetent and makes MPs’ and their staff’s lives harder. In a nutshell, IPSA treats MPs’ staff with total contempt. Not just on this issue, the whole thing needs to be burned to the ground and rebuilt from scratch.”
PoliticsHome understands that some parliamentary staff were on a call with IPSA to discuss the pay increase last week, with some in attendance feeling that concerns about workload were met with a dismissive response.
MPs also have the authority to block their staff from receiving the pay rise. PoliticsHome understands some parliamentarians, including Labour MPs, signed to prevent their staff from getting pay uplifts last year.
Lisa Gillmore, GMB MPs’ and peers’ staff branch president and senior parliamentary researcher, said: “The GMB MPs’ and Peers’ Staff Branch wants to see a fair pay deal for everyone working in Parliament, but struggle to understand why IPSA think the cost of living is 1.5 per cent lower for caseworkers, researchers and office managers than it is for MPs.
“Staff handle the complex casework and safeguarding issues, and face escalating abuse. Many of those same staff are earning just above the minimum wage.
“MPs’ staff have experienced a pay cut of 14.6 per cent since 2019 based on RPI, while workloads have increased significantly, leading to long hours, stress, and burnout. 58 per cent of our members feel that their salary does not reflect their responsibilities and workload. If rising living costs justify a 5 per cent increase for MPs, IPSA must explain why this does not extend to staff.”
Another parliamentary staffer said: “The most offensive thing about the 5 per cent rise for MPs is that their justification – rising casework, increasing abuse, new demands on time – are all borne first and foremost by staff.
“We’re the ones who pick up the phone, or read the emails, or go through the social media feeds reading bile and looking for death threats. We’re the ones who, despite a significant increase in casework and demands on time, have to make do with the same budgets and staff numbers.”
Parliamentary staff have pointed out that their pay consistently lags behind the civil service, despite fewer opportunities for growth and promotion. For many junior staff working in Westminster, they now earn barely more than the living wage.
IPSA has been contacted for comment.
