To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the current pay differential between ambulance staff who are non-emergency workers and those classified as emergency workers.

Under current pay rates, which have been effective since 1 April 1988, the comparison between the basic rate for non-emergency basic ambulance man/woman grade and the emergency staff grades of qualified and leading ambulance man/woman is as follows:

	£ per annum
Ambulanceman/woman	7,340
Qualified ambulanceman/woman	10,093
Leading ambulanceman/woman	10,888

Staff in the London ambulance service receive an additional payment of £981 per annum.Under the new rates offered by the management side on 5 December and effective from 1 April 1989 the comparison is as follows:

	Outside London £ per annum	London ambulance service £ per annum
Ambulanceman/woman	8,001	9,232
Qualified ambulanceman/woman	11,001	12,384
Leading ambulanceman/woman	11,868	13,305

In addition, emergency staff groups required to use paramedical skills gained from extended training to NHS training authority standard will receive an additional £500 per annum. The management side has also undertaken to agree with the trade union side, by 28 February 1990, a national framework for the recognition of staff specially trained, either locally to standards other than of the NHS training authority, or partially to those standards, with payments backdated to 1 April 1989.