HC Deb 24 November 1987 vol 123 c125
3. Mr. David Marshall

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services what reports he has received on the problem of retaining qualified medical laboratory scientific staff within the National Health Service; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs. Currie

We are aware of reports of problems in some areas.

Mr. Marshall

Does the Minister accept that medical laboratory scientific officers are highly qualified people and an integral and essential part of patient care? Does she agree that they are grossly underpaid and will she now agree to include them in the pay review body as soon as possible?

Mrs. Currie

We do indeed regard them as very important people. The hon. Gentleman may not know that last week the staff side of committee A of the appropriate Whitley council accepted the offer of a 5 per cent, increase in pay and allowances, that this has been back dated to 1 April 1987, and payment of it is now in hand. However, we accept that there are problems with the present grading structure and we have commissioned an independent study covering the whole subject of the provision of pathology staff. We hope that the results of that study will shortly be available.

Mr. Michael Morris

My hon. Friend will be aware that I wrote to her on this subject. I welcome her response to the grading study. Does she now accept that the laboratory staff have patient contact and that they are a vital link in the chain of medical care? We need to retain the most senior ones with experience, and the study should concentrate on them.

Mrs. Currie

I hear what my hon. Friend says and thank him for his kind remarks. I understand that the difficulty is in retaining the basic grades, and therefore the study will pay a great deal of attention to that.

Mr. Hoyle

Will the Minister supplement the 5 per cent, salary increase with uniform payments? I am sure she will agree that that would reduce the high turnover and lift the morale of this vital but underpaid sector of the Health Service.

Mrs. Currie

We shall take the hon. Gentleman's remarks into account.

Dr. Michael Clark

Will my hon. Friend tell us how the number of scientific staff has increased during the lifetime of this Government? Is there any sign that the current salary levels have handicapped recruiting?

Mrs. Currie

I have no details for all the scientific staffs of all types employed by the National Health Service, but I can tell my hon. Friend that the number of qualified medical laboratory scientific staff, which is the subject of this question, is now 11,000. That is an increase of 34 per cent, since 1979. The salary scales range from just under £7,000 for the lowest basic grade to over £17,000.