§ Miss Fookesasked the Secretary of State for Defence if any higher ranking officers will break even or lose money as 290W a result of the combination of higher pay and higher charges for accommodation.
§ Mr. MulleyThe supplements to Service pay effective from 1st April 1977, when food and accommodation charges were also raised, were for ranks up to brigadier or equivalent. Taking into account only the supplements to pay and the increase in charges some colonels and brigadiers will receive an after-tax increase which is less than the increase to charges. However, the effect of rising living costs has outstripped the net pay increase permissible under the Government's incomes policy for other sections of the community, particularly in the higher income groups. Nevertheless, the recent tax changes proposed in the Budget will provide some relief for these officers, whose total net income will, as a result be somewhat larger following the pay award than it was before.