§ Mr. SawfordTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to return salary levels for biomedical scientists within the NHS in comparison to doctors to the level which obtained in 1984; and if he will make a statement. [86470]
§ Mr. DenhamThe pay of biomedical scientists, who are also called Medical Laboratory Scientific Officers, is negotiated in the Professional and Technical Staffs Whitley Council. The Management Side has made a pay offer for 1999–2000 based on issues specific to these staff, including recruitment and retention, affordability, National Health Service output targets and the economic context. We are also discussing with all NHS unions the proposals to modernise the NHS pay system published in "Agenda for Change" on 15 February 1999.