Zahawi seeking 9pc pay rise for teachers

NADHIM ZAHAWI has asked the Treasury to give teachers pay rises of up to 9 per cent, in an attempt to see off strike action, The Daily Telegraph has learnt.

The Education Secretary wants to give the 130,000 teachers in England who are in the first five years of their careers a rise of up to 9 per cent from September, as part of moves to take starting salaries to £30,000.

He is also proposing a pay rise of 5 per cent for the remaining 380,000 teachers in England, instead of the 3 per cent figure planned by the Government.

Mr Zahawi has made the request in a formal letter to Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor. It comes after the School Teachers’ Review Body, an independent panel appointed by the Government, told him that a 3 per cent rise would not be sufficient. The Education Secretary is not bound to follow the body’s recommendation, but has decided to do so in the hope it will avert strikes.

Strikes have already blighted the railways and walkouts have been threatened by doctors, nurses and council workers. Teaching unions have vowed

to strike if they deem any pay offer too low, but officials hope a near-inflation rise for some new teachers would appease senior colleagues.

Mr Zahawi is the first Cabinet minister known to have challenged the Chancellor over his calls for pay restraint amid concerns that large salary increases could stoke inflation.

A source said: “Nadhim Zahawi has made it clear that the quality of teaching is the single most important factor within a school for children’s outcomes and we need to make teaching an even more attractive profession. Teachers deserve a pay rise and the Government wants to prevent any strikes.”

The bodies that make recommendations on pay for other areas of the public sector are expected to submit their findings shortly.

The NASUWT teachers’ union said it would ballot members for industrial action in November if the pay increase this year was less than 12 per cent.

To meet the 2019 election manifesto commitment to raise starting salaries to £30,000 by 2024, Mr Zahawi has also asked the Chancellor for a further 7 per cent increase for new teachers next year.