MPs have been accused of living in "cloud cuckoo land" after demanding their salaries are hiked by a third to £86,000.
Tory backbencher Andrew Bridgen waded into the row yesterday evening by insisting the "vast majority" of the public did not consider £65,000 a year "a lot of money" - even though it is more than double the average wage.
According to the research by YouGov, 69% of MPs thought they were underpaid on £65,738.
On average:
One MP insisted they should get £40,000 or less, but a fifth of those questioned said they deserved £95,000 or more.
The overall average suggestion was £86,250.
MPs have suggested a 32% pay hike to the Commons expenses watchdog. An anonymous survey for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa)also found that 35% of MPs believe they deserve to keep their gold-plated pensions.
The findings emerged as Ipsa published a report on its initial consultation into pay and pensions.
The survey follows research by YouGov that 69% of MPs think they are underpaid on their current salary of £65,738.
The research found that 27% of the MPs wanted their pay to go up by more than 1% over the next two years - despite public sector rises and most working age benefits being capped at that level.