A two-tier pay scale for MPs? Don’t tell the Tories

This’ll get some Tory MPs’ blood boiling. Not least the ones who cheered the anonymous attack on David Cameron that turned up in Conservative MPs’ postbags on Monday.

The Chair of the Senior Salaries Review Body, Bill Cockburn, was giving evidence to the Public Administration Select Committee today. Mr Cockburn will be working with Sir Christopher Kelly’s review of MPs’ expenses.

Mr Cockburn was asked about the possibility of having two pay scales for “full-time” and “part-time” MPs – i.e. giving a pay cut to MPs (most of them Tories) with outside interests.

Many of these Tories already feel “got at” by David Cameron going along with Gordon Brown’s new register of interests rules requiring them to publish their exact outside income and hours worked.

Certain Tory MPs go into orbit if you even mention it. You really wouldn’t want to be around when they hear someone’s thinking of creating a two-tier pay scale for MPs and they’d be on the lower rung.

PS Click here for the list people have been waiting for, of money paid back so far by MPs – just published.

PPS At first count this looks like more than 180 MPs have paid back money. Many of the names have not been in the headlines and many of the amounts will make your eyes pop.