Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to support his Department's workforce with the rising cost of living.

Defence recognises that nobody is immune from the recent rises in inflation and the cost of living. We are committed to doing what we can to assist Armed Forces personnel and Ministry of Defence (MOD) civil servants where possible.

Armed Forces

In July the Government accepted the Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body’s (AFPRB’s) and Senior Salaries Review Body’s recommendations in full for the 2023/24 Pay Round, backdated to 1 April 2023 and paid in August salaries. The AFPRB’s headline recommendation, for all Service Personnel up to and including one-star level, was a 5% plus £1,000 consolidated increase in pay. This provided total pay increases of between 9.7% for the most junior ranks and 5.8% for officers at one-star rank, the biggest uplift in 21 years for the Armed Forces.

Regular Service Personnel now have an average salary of £41,000, up from £38,100 last year. Reservists who are paid on an attendance basis also saw their pay increased by the same proportion.

Civil Servants:

In line with Cabinet Office Civil Service Pay remit guidance, the headline pay award for MOD civilians in 2023 was 4.5% plus 0.5% to address the lowest paid. An additional £1,500 cost of living payment has been made to eligible staff across the Civil Service. The MOD has also produced a Financial Wellbeing Support Guide which signposts a number of internal and external resources, guidance, information and support available to MOD personnel, including the Government’s Moneyhelper website which gives financial guidance in all areas from budgeting to credit cards, to reducing energy bills and pensions.