Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the answer of 20 January 2026 to Question 104803, how much the two annual pay awards were; and whether the FDA is recognised as a trade union.

As set out previously (UIN 54797), the government’s policy is that pay awards for special advisers are considered annually, and any such award is linked to the approach taken for the Senior Civil Service. In line with the headline award for senior civil servants, the 2024/25 pay award for special advisers was 5% and the 2025/26 pay award for special advisers was 3.25%.

The FDA is recognised as a trade union for special advisers.