MPs will receive £2,212 more for the year from 1 April, increasing their pay by 2.7% from £81,932 to £84,144, the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) announced.

IPSA, who sets MPs' pay independently of parliament and government, said the pay rise is the same as the average increase in pay for public sector employees last year.

MPs' work 'dramatically increased last year'

MPs' pay has remained unchanged for the past two years due to the pandemic and both Boris Johnson and Sir Keir Starmer had urged IPSA to not increase it for the upcoming year.

Mr Johnson in January urged IPSA to show "restraint" in setting MPs' pay and suggested salaries should remain the same as he cited the cost-of-living pressures being felt by families across the country.

Sir Keir Starmer had also echoed this, saying all parliamentarians should be saying "that we don't need that pay rise and it shouldn't go ahead" this year.

Richard Lloyd, IPSA's Chair, said: "MPs play a vital role in our democracy and this is reflected in their pay.

"It is right that MPs are paid fairly for the responsibility and the unseen work they do helping their constituents, which dramatically increased last year."

More cash for MPs over the pandemic

MPs have not seen a rise in their basic pay over the pandemic but they were able to access more cash to run their offices from home, as well as having their staff work from home.

A few days before the March 2020 lockdown, IPSA told MPs they would get a £10,000 increase to their office costs budget as well as an increased credit limit on their payment cards from £4,000 to £10,000.

At the time, IPSA said: "Most MPs' staff moved at very short notice from being based in Westminster, or in a constituency office, to working from home.

"Many staff were not set up for home working, nor for supporting constituents remotely.

"This additional funding is to help them make that transition, while they deal with a huge increase in workload from distressed constituents as a result of coronavirus issues."

Cost of living crisis

The increase in MPs' pay comes as the government warned of a cost of living crisis, with an increased price cap on energy coming in April, while food and almost all services have seen a rise.

Last week, the chief executive of British Gas' parent firm Centrica waived his bonus as he said it "didn't feel right" as households grapple with unprecedented increases to their energy bills.

CEO Chris O'Shea said he had decided to give up the £1.1m bonus as the household supply business reported a 44% rise in annual operating profits to £118m.

At the beginning of February, Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey was criticised for suggesting workers should not ask for big pay rises as the Bank battles surging inflation.

One union leader described the comments as a "sick joke" while Downing Street said the wage restraint urged by Mr Bailey, whose latest annual pay was more than £575,000, was "not something that the prime minister is calling for".