§ Mr. Bakerasked the Minister for the Civil Service whether he will ask the Pay 333W Research Unit to carry out a study of the extent to which Civil Service pay has drawn ahead, or fallen behind, pay in the private sector since 1973.
§ Mr. Charles R. MorrisNo. The main Civil Service grades below Under-Secretary level last had a settlement based on pay research evidence of rates in payment for comparable work on 1st April 1975. Since then, civil servants have received increases in accordance with the Government's pay guidance. As I announced on 21st November—[Vol. 939, c. 1089–92.]—the Pay Research Unit has now been asked to produce evidence for a pay research settlement from 1st April 1979. The pay of civil servants at Under-Secretary level and above is based on reports by the Top Salaries Review Body (TSRB), and in their case TSRB recommendations for salaries judged appropriate for 1st January 1975 have not yet been fully implemented.