The government is to lift the 1% public sector pay cap for the first time for both police and prison officers, the BBC understands.
Ministers are expected to accept recommendations for higher pay rises this week and also to pave the way for similar increases in other sectors.
BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said it was the “first concrete example of the pay cap being dismantled”.
Unions, the opposition, and some Tories are calling for the cap to be lifted.
Public sector pay was frozen for two years in 2010, except for those earning less than £21,000 a year, and since 2013, rises have been capped at 1% – below the rate of inflation.
The higher increases expected this week for police and prison officers are based on the recommendations of independent pay review bodies, with recruitment and retention problems being cited in the case of prison officers.
The BBC understands the Treasury will then issue guidance on next year’s pay round, which is likely to see the cap eased in other areas where there are similar problems, such as teaching and nursing.
Read more at bbc.co.uk
