Public Services

Elizabeth Truss Excerpts

Tuesday 12th September 2017 Written Statements

[The Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Elizabeth Truss)]

Our public sector workers are among the most extraordinarily talented and hardworking people in our society. They, like everyone else, deserve to have fulfilling jobs that are fairly rewarded.

We take a balanced approach to public spending, dealing with our debts to keep our economy strong, while also making sure we invest in our public services.

The Government will continue to ensure that the overall package for public sector workers is fair to them and ensure that we can deliver world class public services, while also being affordable within the public finances and fair to taxpayers as a whole.

The last spending review budgeted for 1% average basic pay awards, in addition to progression pay for specific workforces, and there will still be a need for pay discipline over the coming years, to ensure the affordability of the public services and the sustainability of public sector employment.

However, the Government recognise that in some parts of the public sector, particularly in areas of skill shortage, more flexibility may be required to deliver world class public services including in return for improvements to public sector productivity.

The detail of 2018-19 pay remits for specific pay review bodies will be discussed and agreed as part of the Budget process and set out in due course.

Police and prison officer pay awards

The following sets out the Government’s response to the recommendations in the third annual report of the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) and the sixteenth report of the Prison Service Pay Review Body (PSPRB) which were published today.

My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary (Amber Rudd) has decided to award officers in the PRRB remit group a pay award worth a total of 2% to each officer in 2017-18, consisting of a 1% consolidated pay increase in addition to a one-off 1% non- consolidated payment to officers in that remit group. This award will be funded within existing budgets.

The police pay award will be implemented with effect from 1 September 2017 as follows:

A 1% increase to base pay for all ranks.

An additional one-off non-consolidated payment to officers at federated and superintending ranks.

A 1% increase to the London Weighting payment.

A 1% increase to the Dog Handlers’ Allowance.

The Home Secretary’s full decision on all recommendations will be published alongside the PRRB report, on their website. These awards will be funded within existing budgets.

In addition, the supplement to the 2017 report of the senior salaries review body making recommendations on the pay of chief police officers has also been published today. The Home Secretary has accepted these recommendations.

My right hon. Friend the Justice Secretary (David Lidington) has accepted the PSPRB recommendations, giving all prison staff a pay increase. This pay award will help recruit and retain staff with the right experience and expertise to keep our prisons safe and secure. This is in line with the recommendation of the PSPRB. This award will be funded within existing budgets.

The prison officer pay award is as follows and will be implemented in October’s pay and backdated to 1 April 2017:

All prison officers and operational support grades in bands 2-5 will receive a consolidated increase of at least £400, including those on their pay band maximum.

All uniformed staff on ‘Fair and Sustainable’ terms in bands 2-5 below the maximum will also progress by one pay point.

Managers in bands 7-11 on ‘Fair and Sustainable’ terms will receive pay progression above 1% depending on their performance rating and place in their pay band.

Managers on closed grades will get at least 1%, and those below their pay scale maximum will get more.

I thank all three Chairs and members of the independent Pay Review Bodies for their hard work in producing these recommendations.

Copies of the reports are available in the Vote Office and will be published online.

[HCWS127]