Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1997

1997 CHAPTER 62

An Act to make provision for the alteration of salaries payable under the Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1975.

[6th November 1997]

Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—

1 Ministerial and other salaries: alteration

(1) Section 1(4) of the [1975 c. 27.] Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1975 (salaries: power to substitute figures) is hereby repealed.

(2) After section 1 of the 1975 Act there shall be inserted—

“1A Alteration of salaries

(1) For each year starting with 1st April, from 1998 onwards, the annual amount, or maximum or minimum annual amount, of any salary payable under section 1(1) or (3) of this Act shall be increased by the relevant percentage.

(2) The relevant percentage is the average percentage by which the mid-points of the Senior Civil Service pay bands having effect from 1st April of the year concerned have increased compared with the previous 1st April.

(3) The mid-point of a Senior Civil Service pay band is the point half way between the maximum and the minimum.

1B Power to make further alterations

(1) Her Majesty may from time to time by Order in Council make provision for changing the annual amount, or maximum or minimum annual amount, of any salary payable under section 1 of this Act.

(2) An Order in Council under subsection (1) above may—

(a) specify a new amount, or

(b) provide for an amount to be determined, or to change from time to time, by reference to another amount or a specified formula.

(3) An Order in Council under subsection (1) above may—

(a) make different provision for different circumstances, and

(b) make amendments to this Act.

(4) No recommendation shall be made to Her Majesty to make an Order in Council under subsection (1) above unless a draft of the Order has been approved—

(a) by resolution of each House of Parliament, or

(b) in the case of a draft which relates only to the salary of the Speaker of the House of Commons, by resolution of that House.”.

2 Consequential amendments

(1) For section 4(2) of the [1975 c. 27.] Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1975 (amounts to be construed as maximum amounts) there shall be substituted—

“(2) The amount provided for by or under this Act as the amount of any salary payable out of money provided by Parliament shall be taken to be the maximum amount so payable; and accordingly the salary so payable in any year may be of a less amount than that provided for.”.

(2) In paragraph 1(1) of Part V of Schedule 1 to the 1975 Act (Ministerial salaries)—

(a) for “stated in relation to that office in column 2” there shall be substituted “provided for”, and

(b) for “so stated” there shall be substituted “provided for”.

(3) In paragraph 1 of Part II of Schedule 2 to the 1975 Act (Opposition leaders and whips), for “stated in relation to that person in column 2” there shall be substituted “provided for”.

3 Short title

This Act may be cited as the Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1997.