GOLDEN goodbyes for MPs, worth up to £33,000, look set to end as Westminster's independent watchdog is expected to announce their demise later this week.

The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) is also set to scale back MPs' generous pension entitlements.

The watchdog recently sparked controversy with suggestions that its report, due out on Thursday, will recommend a £10,000 pay rise for MPs.

Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, and Danny Alexander, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, have already made clear they would hand any pay rise back to the Exchequer.

Ipsa chairman, Sir Ian Kennedy, yesterday described the golden goodbyes, officially termed resettlement grants, as a "reminder of the old, cushioned world of privilege" and a historical peculiarity.