§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Bach)My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Geoffrey Hoon) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
The 2004 report of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body has been published today. Copies of the report are available in the Vote Office and the Library of the House. I wish to express my thanks to the chairman and members of the review body for their clear and wide-ranging report.
The AFPRB has recommended an increase in basic military salary of 2.8 per cent for the majority of personnel and 3.2 per cent for certain Privates and Lance Corporals (those on the lower pay range). The AFPRB has also recommended increases in the rates of specialist pay (for example, flying pay, submarine pay, diving pay and hydrographic pay), and in accommodation charges. The AFPRB has also recommended a 3.2 per cent increase to rates of longer separated service allowance and longer service at sea bonus which are designed to compensate for separation.
The additional cost to the defence budget will be £196 million. This will be met within existing departmental expenditure limits.
The AFPRB's recommendations are to be accepted in full, with implementation effective from 1 April 2004.