Women paid less than men in Whitehall, figures show

Female civil servants in five Whitehall departments are being paid less than their male counterparts, new figures show.

The greatest gender pay gap is at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, where women are paid 10.6 per cent less than men. Senior female civil servants at the Foreign Office are paid 10 per cent less than men. There is a 9 per cent pay gap at the Ministry of Justice, while at the Department of Energy the gap is 6.2 per cent. At the Department for Work and Pensions, the pay gap is 2.9 per cent. The Equality and Human Rights Commission says that gender pay gaps of more than 5 per cent leave any organisation open to employment tribunals.

The figures were collated by Labour, whose equalities spokesman Gloria De Piero said: "The Government should be leading by example."