Dear constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about public sector pay and the pay remit guidance for civil servants and other public sector workers not covered by Pay Review Bodies.

As you will know, on 31 March the Government published the civil service pay remit guidance. This set out a limit to pay increases of 2-3%. The Government claims the guidance “considers economic conditions while balancing the need for sustainable public finances”. However, I am aware of the concern and disappointment that Prospect, the Public and Commercial Services Union and others have expressed at the guidance. I appreciate the concerns you raise, and I can assure you that I will keep them in mind as I continue to monitor this issue.

More widely, I believe the Government needs to address the cost-of-living crisis that is hitting public sector workers and the general public alike, and to recognise that its choices are leaving real wages squeezed and people worse off. Rather than imposing higher taxes on working people already feeling the impact of rising prices, it should be supporting them through this crisis, including by scrapping its National Insurance increase and using a windfall tax on North Sea oil and gas companies to help households with their energy bills.

Thank you once again for contacting me about this issue.

 Yours sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP