§ 20. Mr. Roseasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how his proposal for a £2 wage increase freeze will operate in respect of groups of workers with current claims pending within the public sector.
§ Mr. BarberThe statement in the Press notice after the meeting on 26th September said that the Government expected all those concerned with pay and price determination not to take any action while the talks were going on which would risk prejudicing the prospects of the proposals being applied over the next 12 months. In the light of this, the parties to a number of negotiations in both the private and public sectors have thought it right to await the outcome of our further discussions before bringing their negotiations to a conclusion. But this has not precluded public sector employers from continuing negotiations in appropriate cases, and a 213W number of settlements have in fact been made on the basis of offers made before 26th September.