The commitment made by the Government in its election manifesto - to deliver a genuine living wage for working people - took a step closer today (5 August), as it set out new considerations for the Low Pay Commission (LPC) when recommending next year’s National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage.
Around three million workers benefitted from last year’s decision to include the cost of living in the LPC’s remit for the first time, which led to a record cash increase in the Minimum Wage for apprentices and those under 18, and a £1,400 annual boost for full-time workers on the National Living Wage from April.
With younger workers being held back by discriminatory age bands, the updated LPC remit will drive forward the Government’s commitment to delivering a single adult pay band.
The LPC will consult with employers, trade unions and workers on narrowing the gap between the 18–20-year-old rate of the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage and put forward recommendations on achieving a single adult rate.
The remit will also ensure the LPC continues to actively consider the cost of living in its recommendations for National Living Wage rates to apply from April 2026.
Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds (left), said: “Low pay drags down living standards for our workers and in turn hurts our high streets and local businesses.
“This Government’s Plan for Change will put money back in people’s pockets, with this new remit marking the next step in considering how we ensure a fair deal for our lowest paid workers while maintaining a competitive economy that boosts businesses and their employees alike.”
Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner (right), added: “We promised to make low pay a thing of the past, and deliver a wage people can live on, and that is exactly what this government is determined to deliver.
“We’ve already taken bold action to Make Work Pay with more than three million workers seeing a huge boost in their pay following our increase to National Minimum and Living Wage.
This remit is the next milestone in our plan to get more money in working people’s pockets, raise living standards in every part of the UK, and get our economy growing.”
TUC General Secretary, Paul Nowak, also added: “Boosting the minimum wage isn’t just good for workers - it’s good for business too. When low-paid workers have more money in their pockets they spend it locally - supporting shops, cafés and high streets.
“That’s why the government is right to set out its ambition to raise the floor of the minimum wage and end the outdated and unfair youth rates. A bolder, more ambitious minimum wage isn’t a risk. It’s the next step in building a fairer, stronger economy where hard work is properly rewarded.”
The Government sets the minimum wage rates each year following the advice of the LPC. These recommendations are made by the LPC each October – for minimum wage rates to apply from the following April – in line with the parameters set out in the annual remit from the Department for Business and Trade.
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