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FDA Assistant General Secretary Naomi Cooke responded to the Institute for Government's call for a new Spending Review to address "long-standing issues" with public sector resourcing, :

"We welcome the IfG’s backing for a new Spending Review in light of the election result, which echoes the FDA's own call for the new government to provide fresh investment. As our recent survey of public sector leaders shows, 86% do not believe that their organisation is properly resourced for the next 12 months.

"With senior MPs and their advisers now publicly questioning the wisdom of the ongoing public sector pay freeze, it is also becoming clear that any new Spending Review must urgently address the issue of stagnant and uncompetitive pay in the public sector. Our survey shows that 83% of civil service leaders are unhappy with their pay, while two-thirds told us their organisation is now facing recruitment and retention problems.

"At a moment of great political uncertainty, the people keeping the country's public services running must have the necessary resources, and be fairly rewarded, for the huge challenges ahead. Now more than ever, Britain needs a strong civil service – and that means investment."

Notes for editors

1.  The FDA is the trade union for the UK's senior public servants and professionals at grade HEO and above. FDA membership includes more than 18,000 senior civil servants, diplomats, Government policy advisors, prosecutors, tax professionals, economists, solicitors and other professionals working across Government and the NHS.

2.  The FDA (formerly the First Division Association) should be referred to simply as "The FDA" and can be described as "the senior public servants’ union". 

3.  Notes on survey findings: Our Pay Survey of FDA members ran over a four-week period from April to May 2017, receiving 1,971 responses.

1,944 answered the question: "Do you believe your organisation is sufficiently resourced to meet the challenges facing it in the year ahead?" Of those, 1,667 (85.97%) responded 'No', while 277 (14.25%) responded 'Yes'.

1,963 answered the question: "How satisfied are you with the overall pay arrangements in the civil service?" Of those, 719 (36.63%) said they were "very dissatisfied", 908 (46.26%) said they were "dissatisfied", 317 (16.15%) said they were "satisfied" and 19 said they were "very satisfied" (0.97%).

1,954 answered the question: "Are you aware of recruitment and/or retention difficulties in your organisation?" Of those, 1,321 (67.70%) responded "Yes", while 633 (32.40%) said "No".

Further findings from the survey will be released in due course.

4. The FDA can be found on Twitter @FDA_union and at www.fda.org.uk.

For further information contact:

• Naomi Cooke, Assistant General Secretary, tel: 020 7401 5574
• Matt Foster or Tommy Newell, FDA Communications Officers, tel: 07982 514 524 or 020 7401 5588