§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what is estimated to be the total wage and salary bill for permanent local government staff in 1974–75 as compared with 1973–74; and what percentage increase this represents;
(2) what is now estimated to be the overall increase in the number of local authority employees following the reorganisation of local government.
§ Mr. John SilkinAs regards the overall number of staff in local government employment and total wage and salary costs, I am unable to add to the answers given to the hon. Member on 9th April and 22nd May.—[Vol. 872, c.119–20; Vol. 874, c. 172.] However, a report published at the end of May by the Local Authorities Conditions of Service Advisory Board covering a limited number of categories of local government employment indicates 458W that within those categories there was, at 1st April 1974, an estimated increase of approximately 4.7 per cent. in staff numbers and 9.4 per cent. in salary costs over the figures for 1st April 1973. The LACSAB survey was concerned with local authorities in England and Wales, outside Greater London, and was confined to chief executives, chief officers, their deputies and staffs in the administrative, professional, technical and clerical grades. It did not extend to other groups, such as police, firemen, manual workers and teachers, in which changes are likely to have been smaller.