HAMILTON, Bermuda (CMC):

A review board has recommended that the island's politicians get a hefty pay increase at a time when ministers have been urging members of the public to tighten their belts in the face of a world financial downturn.

Members of parliament (MPs) are to vote soon on proposals to give themselves a 30 per cent pay hike, which amounts to US$15,000 a year.

Elected members of the House of Assembly currently earn US$50,000 a year, but members of the Legislature Salaries Review Board are recommending the figure be increased to US$65,000 in April.

This pay rise would equate to an almost 65 per cent in the salaries of MPs since 2006 when they earned just under $40,000 a year.

The report from the board which was tabled in the House of Assembly last Friday recommended that senators get a 'substantial' pay increase from $27,102 to $40,000 a year.