§ 7.2 p.m.
§ Lord SHEPHERD rose to move, That the draft Junior Ministers' and other Salaries Order 1976, laid before the House on 14th July, be approved. The noble Lord said: My Lords, I beg to move the 1260 Motion standing in my name on the Order Paper. The House will be aware that my right honourable friend the Lord President announced in his Statement in the other place on 12th July about MPs' pay that the Government proposed that Junior Ministers and Office Holders in both Houses should receive a supplement of £6 a week under the current pay policy, if their total earnings from all sources do not exceed £8,500 per annum.
§ In the case of all eligible Members of the other place, the increase will be applied to Parliamentary salary. In the case of Peers, the increase has to be applied to salaries drawn as Ministers or Office Holders. The draft order now before this House is designed to achieve that end. A Peer holding any of the posts covered by this order will be eligible for the increase if his total earnings from all sources do not exceed £8,500. The payment of the increase will therefore be subject to confirmation that any other earnings he may receive—and I stress the word, "earnings", which can include income from, for example, directorships, salaries, appointments and professional fees—together with his existing salary under the Act do not exceed £8,500.
§ There are two points about the order which call for special comment. In the first place, it includes the Solicitor General for Scotland who is not a member of either House. His salary as a Law Officer of the Crown is, however, governed by the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act which this draft order seeks to amend, and must therefore be included in the order. The second point is that the order has to provide for an increase in salary for all Parliamentary Secretaries, including those in the other place. In practice, only the two Parliamentary Secretaries who sit in this House will be eligible for the increase; namely, my noble friends Lady Birk and Lord Melchett.
§ Those who sit in the other place also receive a Parliamentary salary which in total puts their income over the £8,500 limit, and so their Ministerial salary will remain at £5,500 under the power in Section 4(2) of the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975 which enables Ministerial salaries to be restricted. The draft order is subject to approval by Resolution in each House of Parliament. Approval was given by the other place on 23rd July. 1261 Subject to the approval of this House, the effective date of the increases will now be the date on which the order is signed by Her Majesty.
§ The salaries of the Ministers and Office Holders in this House are now out of date, having been fixed as long ago as 1st April 1972. Although the report of the Top Salaries Review Body, which will be published very shortly, recommends substantial increases, the Government do not propose to take any action on the report until incomes policy permits. The Government are in no way committed to implementing the Review Body's recommendations. The proposed increase, which is the maximum permitted under the current policy, is a modest measure that does not do full justice to the Ministers and Office Holders concerned. But it nevertheless will serve at this time as a limited token of recompense for all the onerous duties which they perform. I commend the Motion to this House accordingly.
§ Moved, That the draft Junior Ministers' and other Salaries Order 1976, laid before the House on 14th July, be approved.—(Lord Shepherd.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.