§ 39. Mr. Langford-Holtasked the Minister of Education the relative value, in terms of purchasing power, of school masters' salaries fixed in 1938 at £180 minimum to £366 maximum increasing by £12 annually and the rates proposed by the recent Burnham award at £450 minimum to £725 maximum increasing by £18 annually; and what steps she proposes to take to see that the salaries of schoolmasters are restored at least to 1938 levels in terms of purchasing power, bearing in mind that this level is considerably lower than that recommended to Her Majesty's Government by the McNair Committee in 1943.
§ Miss HorsbrughAt present prices a scale corresponding to the 1938 scale mentioned would run approximately from £410 at the minimum to £840 at the maximum with increases of about £27 10s. annually. I cannot, however, accept that it is reasonable to make a simple comparison between the two scales quoted because of the many changes that have taken place in the whole framework of the Burnham Reports since 1938 and, in particular, because of the provisions for the award of discretionary allowances above the scale.