Gordon Brown's contentious decision to increase taxes on individual pension pots is helping to fuel higher pay rises for company chiefs, an independent pay consultant has warned.

From April 2006, any amount in a pension pot that exceeds £1.5m will be hit by new taxes under the chancellor's plans to streamline the pensions tax regime. Some industry experts have calculated those earning £150,000 and above throughout most of their careers could be hit by the changes.