§ Mr. Nicholas BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give the percentage and actual increases in pay for each year since 1964 for(a) at private rank, (b) at sergeant rank, (c) at captain rank and (d) at a major, and for the equivalent Royal Air Force and Royal Navy rank, in each case.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonThe present system of pay in the Armed Forces, which introduced what is known as the military salary, was implemented in two stages in 1970 and 1971.
Prior to this, service men were paid partly in cash and partly by the provision of free food and accommodation, with different rates for married personnel. Information on these earlier rates of pay is not readily available and would not in any case be comparable with the present system. Rates of pay and the increase from 1971 are set out in the table. The variations in percentage increases between the ranks in some years of the 1970s arose in part from the effects of various income policies in force at the time and subsequent catching-up awards.
369W1The pay of non-commissioned ranks is divided into different pay bands according to their technical and other skills. The pay shown is for the middle pay hand and for personnel committed to between six to nine years service. Pay for RAF and RN personnel of equivalent ranks is broadly similar but full pay banding is not used in the RN and minor variations can therefore occur.
2Officers are paid on a scale related to the number of years in rank. The rates shown are for the top of the scale. There is no difference for the pay of equivalent ranks in the RN and RAF.