THE BRITISH SERVICES

Evening Post, Volume CXL, Issue 148, 20 December 1945, Page 7

THE BRITISH SERVICES

INLINE WITH CIVILIAN PAY

(By Telepraph—Press Association—Copyright > Rec. 12.30 p.m. LONDON, Dec. 19. All-round increases in pay for British servicemen, to operate from July 1, 1946, double the basic pre-war rates for entry into all the services. The new rates provide substantial increases for trained men.

The new pay codes, which are announced in a White Paper, represented "a charter for other ranks," said Mr. A. V. Alexander, First Lord of the' Admiralty. They were planned to bring the remuneration of servicemen in line with civilians' wages. The code provided for the payment of 28s a week to recruits in all the services, 42s a week for trained men, for instance, able seaman, leading aircraftmen, or privates with two years' service. •

The plan fixes the marriage allowance at 35s a week. This might be taken, in the case of a married man receiving the marriage allowance, as equivalent to a civilian wage of £5 a week, said Mr. Alexander. It had been decided to discontinue the payment of additions in respect of the number of children, but wives of servicemen would be eligible for the proposed family allowance of 5s a week for each child after the first..

Mr. Alexander pointed out that under the' new pay code the varying scales of-' remuneration for various groups in the services would be discarded and in future there would be a maximum of four pay scales, thus enabling a soldier with military skill only to earn the same pay as an Army tradesman.

A new pay code for officers was now being considered, and an announcement would be made in two or three months.

Viscount Stansgate said there would be no further commissioning of air crews after training except for command management posts. All air crews listed in future would be eligible for commissions. The position of air crews at present serving would be dealt with later. \