I have today laid before the House a statutory instrument, the Local Government (Assistants for Political Groups) (Remuneration) (England) Order 2006, which provides for a rise in the maximum ceiling for the pay of political assistants employed by local authorities. The revised pay ceiling is £34,986. Local authorities have discretion to set their political assistants’ pay up to this limit.

The order restores the upper limit on what local authorities may pay their political assistants to the level on the local authority pay scale which is equivalent in real terms to the limit imposed by the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and two subsequent orders.

The Government's intention to make this order was stated in our discussion paper, “Standards of Conduct in English Local Government”, which was published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on 15 December 2005. In future, we intend that primary legislation will fix permanently the ceiling on political assistants’ pay to the relevant local government pay scale.