asked the Minister of Education whether he will make a statement on salary scales of teachers in colleges of advanced technology.

asked the Minister of Education why no increase in salary has been offered to lecturers and assistant lecturers at colleges of advanced technology.

It is the Government's intention that the salaries of staff in the colleges of advanced technology should be related to those of university teachers with comparable responsibilities. Both sets of salaries are being reviewed simultaneously by the National Incomes Commission. In the meantime it is desirable that nothing should be done to accentuate any divergencies between the two systems. The reason why the increases which have recently been announced for college of advanced technology teachers do not include any increases for lecturers and assistant lecturers is that the existing salary scales for these grades are already comparable with those of the corresponding grades in universities.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the A.U.T. has described his action as disgraceful, and the A.T.T.I. has described it as a gross injustice? This is not the first time that the right hon. Gentleman has been stigmatised by the bodies with whom he is in negotiation. Is he further aware that they complain that there has not been proper negotiation? As it is clear, that C.A.T.s are to be prejudiced unless action is taken, will he say that we cannot afford to wait for the report from N.I.C. but that some action will have to be taken in view of the fact that junior staffs of the C.A.T.s are the only staffs of the teaching world who will have had no increase?

The hon. Gentleman has raised three points. As regards the views of the A.U.T. and the A.T.T.I., I have taken my stand on the point on which I must continue to stand, that C.A.T.s staffs must in future expect their salaries to move in step with university salaries rather than with salaries in technical colleges. C.A.T.s cannot be between the two, part of the range being comparable with universities, and the lower half being comparable with regional colleges.

On negotiation, I say that negotiating machinery of the Burnham type is no longer appropriate for these institutions. The proposed increases were fully discussed with the teachers association.

This is too long.

I was asked three questions on this important subject. I personally interviewed both sides. Finally, the starting salary of a C.A.T. lecturer at £1,600 is equivalent to that of a university lecturer after six years' service.

Is not the right hon. Gentleman aware that the staffs of the colleges of advanced technology say that there is no properly worked out system of equivalents and that many of them have had industrial experience, some of it of considerable length, before entering teaching, but that it is not taken into account when they are compared with university staff?

Can I assure the hon. Lady that we have tried to take this into account? The starting salary of a C.A.T. lecturer is £1,600, while the basic minimum for a university lecturer is £1,250. After looking into this carefully, I believe that the disparity is wide enough to cover differences in conditions.