Anecdotally, many such examples come to my attention. I declare an interest as chief executive of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals. I welcome what my noble friend has said about the approach in the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review. My Lords, I cannot ensure that the Treasury does anything. However, I shall personally do my best to pass on to my colleagues in the Treasury the importance of having academic staff of the highest possible quality in our universities.
Pay is a factor, although by no means the only one.
Many other issues arise when young people decide what kind of career they want to pursue. There are, I am glad to say, numbers of highly intelligent young people who believe that this is a worthwhile career. My Lords, every time the noble Baroness answers a question on this subject, she says that the response to the Bett report is a matter for the universities themselves. My Lords, there is nothing in conflict with what I have said. Decisions regarding university teachers' pay are not made nationally.