press release on question re establishment of Senior Salary board

Mike Hedges AM calls for Senior Salary Board be established to oversee senior public sector salaries.

 

Swansea East AM has called for the establishment of a Senior Salary Pay Board which will oversee and set senior public sector salaries in Wales. He asked Leighton Andrews, Minister at Welsh Assembly -

 

14:39

Mike Hedges -

Public sector goes beyond local government itself. Will the Minister consider setting up a senior salaries board for bodies funded by the Welsh Government that could set recommended bands for senior salaries across the whole of the Welsh public sector?

14:39

 

Leighton Andrews -

One of the issues I think we have to look at as we create one Welsh public service is that there are different terms and conditions in different parts of the public services in Wales. We have established the Public Services Staff Commission, of course, on a non-statutory basis, and next week the draft Bill will set out our proposals for establishing the Public Services Staff Commission on a statutory basis. There are a number of issues that will arise I think that we will have to consider as we move forward on public service pay and public service rewards, and it’s important, I think, that those considerations are given the right framework. I think the Public Services Staff Commission does that.

 

Mike Hedges said….’ I think that if such a commission were established it would take some of the heat and controversy about the size of public sector senior pay and would provide a mechanism for ensuring that some public sector senior salaries do not reach absurd limits which draw public criticism’

 

Ends