CLACTON MP Douglas Carswell claims plans to hike MPs' wages by a huge 11 per cent are “offensive”.

The backbench Tory criticised the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, which is expected to recommended today that MPs are given a massive basic salary increase from £66,396 to £74,000 in May 2015.

The authority, which does not need the backing of Parliament to make the changes, is likely to say that MPs’ pay has fallen behind in recent years.

Mr Carswell said: “This is absurd, offensive and uncalled for.

“Having given this quango responsibility, they seem to be doing just about everything they can to undermine whatever confidence was left in the system.

“MPs' salaries have been frozen for five years and now they absurdly want to hike up by thousands of pounds – I can only imagine what local nurses and people in the public sector feel about this.”

Mr Carswell has previously called for Ipsa to be scrapped.

Tim Young, Labour's parliamentary candidate for Clacton, called on Mr Carswell to donate any pay rise to charity.

Mr Carswell declined to respond to Mr Young’s comments.