Review Body on Senior Salaries (34th Report)

Tuesday 13th March 2012 Written Statements

[The Prime Minister (Mr David Cameron)]

The 34th report of the Review Body on Senior Salaries (SSRB) is being published today. This makes recommendations about the pay of the Senior Civil Service (SCS), Senior Military Personnel, the Judiciary and Very Senior NHS Managers. Copies have been laid in the Vote Office, the Printed Paper Office and the Libraries of both Houses. I am grateful to the chairman and members of the review body for their work.

In the June 2010 Budget, the Government announced a two-year pay freeze from 2011-12 for public sector workforces, except for those earning a full-time equivalent salary of £21,000 or less, where the Government would seek increases of at least £250 per year. This policy is helping us to protect jobs and the quality of public services as we look to restore the public finances to a sustainable position.

At the same time, we are mindful of the need to ensure that we are capable of recruiting, retaining and motivating public sector workers with the skills that are needed. It is on this basis that the Government will carefully consider the post pay freeze principles set out by the review body and any wider recommendations made by them in relation to recruitment, retention and other aspects of the affected workforces.

Senior Civil Service

The Government will consider the post pay freeze principles and any wider recommendations set out by the review body in relation to the SCS.

Senior Military Personnel

The Government will consider the post pay freeze principles set out by the review body in relation to the senior military personnel.

Judiciary

The Government note the review body’s comments about judicial remuneration and thanks it for its ongoing work in this area.

The Government continue to consider the recommendations that the review body made last year following its most recent major review of the judicial salaries structure, and in the context of the announcement in the autumn statement in November 2011, that public sector pay awards will average 1% for the two years following the implementation of the current two-year pay freeze. As such, the Government will respond to the major review recommendations as a whole, rather than individually, when able to do so. It would not be right to implement new judicial pay increases during a period of pay freeze.

Very Senior NHS Managers

The Government will consider the post pay freeze principles set out by the review body in relation to very senior NHS managers.

Other Review Body reports for 2012-13

My right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Justice, Health and Defence are making statements today on the reports of the Prison Service Pay Review Body, the Doctors’ and Dentists’ Review Body, the NHS Pay Review Body and the Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body in respect of pay for the relevant workforces for 2012-13. The Government’s response to those reports is consistent with the need for senior staff in the public sector to show leadership in the exercise of pay restraint