Cap for civil service pay-offs

Redundancy payments to civil servants will be capped under new legislation to be brought in as soon as possible, the Government has announced.

The decision to introduce the laws has been taken "with reluctance", said Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude, who added the current economic climate had made the move necessary.

Mr Maude also cited the legal action taken by the Public and Commercial Services union against the previous Labour government. The union won a High Court ruling that altering the Civil Service Compensation Scheme was unlawful.

All compulsory redundancy pay-offs will be capped at 12 months' pay and voluntary severance will be limited to 15 months' salary under the Bill.

The move will help bring Civil Service payments in line with the best practice in the private sector, the Cabinet Office said.

Mr Maude said: "Our ambition now is that a negotiated, sustainable and practical long-term successor to the existing scheme can be agreed – one that is flexible and appropriate for current economic climate and also fair for lower paid workers."

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