Britain's MPs are benefiting from the most generous pension scheme in the country, thanks to the taxpayer.

The proportion of the contribution made to their retirement fund by the Treasury is now 50 per cent higher than that made by an employer to the average private sector scheme.

The huge disparity has sparked a row with MPs accused of securing their future while millions of voters prepare to face financial hardship in their old age.

'On the one hand they tell us we need to save more and at the same time they're granting themselves ever more generous pension schemes,' said Tom McPhail, an independent financial adviser with Hargreaves Lansdown.

New figures buried in the small print of the recently published Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund (PCPF) report show 24 per cent of MPs' salary is paid into their final pension scheme each year from public funds, compared with an average 16 per cent from an employer in the private sector. 'It's exceedingly generous. I can't think of another pension fund that offers this level of contribution,' McPhail said.

Even those lucky enough to benefit from the most generous final salary schemes in the private sector can expect their employer to contribute only 18 per cent, according to experts.

Final salary schemes are considered 'gilt-edged' because employers agree to pay employees a guaranteed amount each year in pension entitlements. Such schemes are increasingly rare.

'Most public sector workers can no longer gain access to a final salary scheme,' said Andy Fleming, spokesman for the NAPF. 'If we're talking "money-only" schemes the average contribution is only around 7.6 per cent.

'MPs' decisions on pension policy affects people in this country, but to some extent they're shielded to the effects of it,' Fleming said.

Three years ago the taxpayer contributed only 7.5 per cent to the PCPF, but changes made in 2003 have seen the Treasury inject millions of pounds more after the Government Actuary's Department suggested the scheme fell significantly short of the contribution levels enjoyed by parliamentary members in other EU countries.

The PCPF report for 2003 to 2004, published last week, reveals the Treasury injected £9.8m into the MPs' pension fund, compared with £3.3m in the previous year.

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005