6. WORKFORCE
6.1.7 What are the costs of the consultant
contract in each year from 2005-06? Have these estimates changed,
and if so, can the changes be explained? What have consultant
earnings been in each year from 2001-02? (Q76)
Answer
1. The consultant contract was fully implemented
over three years: 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 with
additional funding of £133 million, £182 million
and £400 million in those years. Part of the negotiation
was an agreed three-year pay deal of 3.255% a year. All funding
in subsequent years is part of baseline expenditure so costs cannot
be separately identified.
2. However, by comparing consultant earnings
over key periods before, during and after implementation, an insight
into costs can be gained. Therefore, a slightly longer time series
(going back to 1998-99) is supplied in table 76. This
year, table 76 includes both earnings per full time equivalent
and the estimated total earnings bill, thereby, showing on average
what each individual consultant earns and the total cost to the
NHS of employing all permanently employed consultants in England
working in hospital and community health services.
3. The earnings per full time equivalent
enable average annual growth in earnings for consultants across
key periods to be calculated, using the average of the individual
year to year averages for the time periods concerned:
— 1998-99 to 2002-03 (five years
prior to the consultant contract): 6.5%.
— 2003-04 to 2005-06 (three years
of implementation): 7.5%.
— 2003-04 to 2007-08 (five years
since implementation): 5.7%.
4. Average earnings growth for consultants
across the five years since implementation of the consultant contract
is 0.8% lower than for the five years prior to implementation.
This has changed since last year because the 2007-08 pay
bill figures include actual data from NHS accounts rather than
estimates which have caused the long-term average to change.
5. The comparison periods cannot be extended
as there was a change in methodology used to calculate earnings
between 1996-97 and 1997-98 which means that the figures
cannot be compared on a consistent basis.
Table 76
CONSULTANT EARNINGS TIME SERIES DATA
|
| | 1998-99
| 1999-2000 | 2000-01
| 2001-02 | 2002-03
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 (2)
| 2005-06 (2) |
2006-07 (2) | 2007-08 (3)
| 2008-09 (4) |
|
| Earnings per full time equivalent (FTE) (£) (1)
| 68,350 | 72,736
| 79,321 | 85,069
| 88,222 | 101,331
| 106,722 | 109,338
| 114,330 | 115,926
| 119,729 |
| Annual growth in earnings per FTE (%) | 6.3%
| 6.4% | 9.1%
| 7.2% | 3.7%
| 14.9% | 5.3%
| 2.5% | 4.6%
| 1.4% | 3.3%
|
| Estimated total earnings bill (£ million) (5)
| 1,397 | 1,557
| 1,760 | 1,962
| 2,184 | 2,669
| 3,003 | 3,238
| 3,501 | 3,644
| 3,913 |
| Annual growth in total earnings bill (%) |
10.4% | 11.5%
| 13.0% | 11.5%
| 11.3% | 22.2%
| 12.5% | 7.8%
| 8.1% | 4.1%
| 7.4% |
|
| Source: |
NHS Pay, DH (2007-08 Pay Bill Model 090811 version)
|
| Footnotes: |
| 1. Figures for permanently employed NHS staff in England in hospital and community health services only and exclude agency.
|
| 2. Includes estimates for NHS foundation trusts.
|
| 3. Figures for 2007-08 are updated from last years answer to take account of final NHS accounts for 2007-08 received in December 2008.
|
| 4. Figures for 2008-09 are projections and subject to change on receipt of actual financial data for 2008-09.
|
| 5. Earnings bill is estimated by subtracting employers' "on-costs", ie pensions and national insurance contributions from the total pay bill.
|
| 6. Together these data series show the average earnings of an individual, and the bigger picture of the total cost to the NHS of employing this staff group as a whole.
|
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