Equal Pay (Hansard, 4 February 1954)

36. Miss Ward
asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what grounds he denies equal pay in the higher grades of the Civil Service while agreeing to it in the higher grades of the Joint Pricing Committee; and whether he will under-take an immediate examination into the expenditure of public money without regard to a common principle.

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
I understand that men and women in the higher grades of the staff of what is now the Joint Pricing Committee already received equal pay before their work was transferred to the National Health Service. This practice was continued on transfer. Equal pay has not been extended to grades not previously entitled to it.
The answer to the last part of the Question is "No, Sir."

Miss Ward
Is it not unfair that people who have not previously been in Government service should be brought into the Government service and obtain the rate for the job, whereas civil servants and teachers, who have served the Government and the country loyally for very many years, and have asked for equal pay, are denied what the Treasury are prepared to accept in respect of new entrants into Government service?

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
Our general policy on this matter has been set out on a number of occasions. I hope my hon. Friend is not suggesting that we ought to alter the conditions of these people for the worse.

Miss Ward
Is my right hon. Friend aware that I am not suggesting that at all? Does he not know that I am asking him when the negotiations took place and with what body? What committee was it that arrived at this very satisfactory agreement with the Treasury?

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
Perhaps my hon. Friend will put that question down.

42. Miss Ward
asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the recent agreement with the National Association of Local Government Officers making pay increases equal for women and men, he will now apply this principle to the Civil Service.

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
No, Sir. I see no advantage in varying the details of the existing Civil Service practice for fixing women's scales of pay until it is possible to make a change of principle.

Miss Ward
As the Treasury have already agreed to equal increases of pay and bonus in respect of N.A.L.G.O., does not my right hon. Friend think it is extremely mean to withhold it from the teachers and the civil servants? Where is the justice that we are always being told about?

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
The arrangements made, which have operated for some years are, in our view, the proper arrangements to make until, as I said in my main answer, it is possible to approach this matter from the point of view of a change of principle. It would be quite wrong to fiddle about with those detailed arrangements.

§ Dr. King
Can the Minister tell us the slightest thing that the Government have done, since they took office, towards furthering the principle to which the Government have given their support?

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
I do not think we need fear comparison with our predecessors in this respect.

Miss Ward
Were the new agreements negotiated with the civil servants and teachers especially so that they would be precluded from getting the beneficial decisions negotiated with N.A.L.G.O.?

§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter
These agreements were negotiated on the existing basis of arrangements made some years ago for dealing with pay increases.