Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what action he is taking to address the gender pay gap in the higher education sector.

Higher Education (HE) institutions are autonomous on staffing matters including pay.

The New Joint Negotiating Committee for Higher Education Staff (JNCHES) provides guidance on pay and pay related issues in the HE sector, including on pay equality with a view to reducing the gender pay gap.

My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has set out this Government’s ambition to eliminate the gender pay gap in a generation. The Government will be introducing regulations which will require all larger employers, including higher education institutions, to publish gender pay gap data and expect employers to start publishing the required information from April 2017.

We are aiming to commence the regulations for the private, voluntary and public sectors at the earliest opportunity, when the Parliamentary timetable allows and once all issues have been considered. We will provide a £0.5 million package of support to help business calculate, understand and address their gender pay gaps.