Chancellor John Healey has suggested that younger workers might not receive the same minimum wage as older employees before the next election. He insisted the boost would still happen, but said he wanted to "look hard" at the trade-offs between jobs and wages.
The move could potentially breach Labour's 2024 manifesto, with the party previously pledging to remove "discriminatory age bands" and vowing to end the gap between the adult minimum wage and pay for 18 to 20-year-olds.
One Step at a Time
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Healey was asked if younger workers would be paid the same as older workers, when it comes to the minimum wage, by the next election. He said: "We'll take one step at a time. There is no question about whether or if, it's a question of when - it's a question of how fast."
"I want to make sure we can look hard at those trade-offs that are there between jobs and wages."
"I want to take business, I want to take trade unions with me, and with the government, because together we have to get into what at the moment is a moral shame on this nation. A million youngsters - written off without any prospect of being helped into work and making contributions to this country for the future."
Budget Measures
In last week's Budget, Mr Healey announced younger workers would see the same increase as older workers, leaving a gap between the two rates this year. Pay for 18 to 20-year-olds in 2026 will rise to £11.27, while over-20s will be paid a minimum of £13.21 an hour.
The Chancellor also suggested that he could make big cuts in the years to come. Mr Healey had already praised his fellow ministers for helping with the difficult decisions made in the Budget, but more could follow.
He said: "We've already demonstrated we are prepared to take hard decisions about the priorities in government. We will carry that through to the 10-year plan and the spending review next year. But in the budget I also set out the ways that we're preparing and the work we've got under way to prepare for those spending review decisions."
Mr Healey's Budget will see millions of households receive £100 to help with energy bills, and fuel duty frozen again for drivers who are being stretched at the pumps by sky-high petrol and diesel prices.
