§ Lord Brougham and Vauxasked Her Majesty's Government:
What progress they have made in extending unified grading in the Civil Service and whether they will make a statement.
The Earl of GowrieAt the beginning of last year a major simplification of the pay and grading structure in the senior management levels of the Civil Service took place with the introduction of unified grading down to the Senior Principal level (Grade 6).
After careful examination, the Government have concluded that it would be right and worthwhile to extend unified grading to the Principal level. This would remove formal demarcations between occupational groups, and make it easier to get the right people into the jobs for which they are best fitted, at a level at which it is particularly important to broaden experience and develop senior management talent.
The new unified Grade 7 will contain over 11,000 staff who are currently in some 100 different grades. The positions of fringe bodies which normally follow Civil Service practice will again be considered on their merits.
The unions will be fully consulted about the implementation of this change and a good deal of preparatory work will need to be done. The Government hope, however, that it will be possible to implement this significant further reform by the end of the year. The necessary cost of aligning the pay of the grades concerned, including appropriate transitional arrangements, will be met from within departments' planned public expenditure provisions.