Prospect union has welcomed the statement by the Scottish Government that it is to lift the 1% cap on public sector pay for 2017-18 and will base future rises on “the cost of living”.

The Scottish Government today published it's most recent Programme for Government. The Programme makes clear that the Scottish Government will end the pay cap for civil and public servants working for the Holyrood administration in 2018.

After intensive lobbying and campaigning by Prospect and the other Civil Service Unions in Scotland, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Constitution Derek Mackay this week agreed that pay settlement dates in the Scottish Government sector could be brought forward to April 2018, without a commensurate reduction in the pay award for 2017.