CONSERVATIVE leader David Cameron and his Liberal Democrat counterpart Nick Clegg said they are matching Gordon Brown and turning down the £1,000 pay rise on offer to MPs.

All Government ministers, including Redcar MP Vera Baird, two other senior Conservative MPs and Liberal Democrat deputy leader Vince Cable will voluntarily forego the 1.5 per cent rise, which will take MPs’ basic salaries to £65,737.

Ms Baird, the Solicitor General, said yesterday: “I don’t want to take a pay increase when the Corus workers in my constituency face redundancy and the local economy is under threat from the proposed mothballing of TCP (Teesside Cast Products).

Last night, Stockton South MP Dari Taylor said she would be donating her pay rise to charity.

“I think that when we are just creeping out of a recession, when people are unemployed or hanging onto their jobs by their fingertips and I’m already on a good salary – it is not appropriate,” she said.

“If I could have the pay increase stopped – I would. As it is I can’t, so I will be giving the money to a local charity.”

The pay rise sparked fury from unions at a time when millions of workers are facing pay freezes or even cuts.

Dave Prentis, of public sector union Unison, said: “It does not seem right that MPs can get a 1.5 per cent pay increase, worth £1,000 a year on basic pay, when low-paid workers, such as teaching assistants, school dinner ladies, social care workers, road sweepers will get nothing, because their pay is being frozen.”

The 1.5 per cent rise will come into effect on April 1.