David Cameron today ruled out a blanket freeze on public sector pay under a future Conservative government.

The Tory leader acknowledged that pay settlements for public sector workers would be “much tighter” as the public finances were rebuilt in the wake of the recession. But he said that a Conservative government would stick by the existing system of public pay review bodies which recommends pay awards across the public sector.

His comments came after Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, refused at the weekend to rule out a public sector pay freeze. Steve Bundred, chief executive of the Audit Commission, said many workers, including those in the NHS and education, would “tolerate” a freeze as they had “done well” over the last 10 years.

Asked on BBC Radio 4's Today programme if he would order a freeze on public sector pay, Mr Cameron said: “I don’t think that is the way we do pay in this country. The way we do pay in this country in the public sector, rightly, is we have independent pay review bodies.”

Mr Cameron emphasised that in making recommendations, the pay review bodies would have to take into account what was happening in the private sector where many workers have seen their pay frozen.

“Those bodies do have to look at what is happening in the private sector, rightly, where pay levels are very restrained because those pay review bodies are looking at how do we recruit, retain and motivate public sector staff,” he said.

“So, yes, you are obviously going to see much tighter public sector pay settlements.”

Meanwhile, the TUC general secretary Brendan Barber warned there would be a “very strong reaction” if the Government attempted to “punish” public sector workers for the problems of the private sector.

"We have seen a period in which there has been a real increase in investment in the public services. That’s not always been reflected in the pay and conditions of public service workers. In many areas pay is still far too low,” he told Today.

“The idea that because the private sector has been facing such tough times we have almost got to punish the public service workers to ensure an equality of misery, which seems to be the mindset of some people in this debate, that is absolutely wrong.

“The prospect of real living standards being cut for public service workers will obviously provoke a very strong reaction and that's not an answer to our economic problems.”

Times Recommends

• Here’s one way MPs can redeem themselves
• Analysis: introducing the word 'failure'
• BA to cut tenth of jobs after disastrous summer