Deputy Prime Minister Angela Raynor said that the government are “on the side of workers in Northern Ireland.”
Up to 170,000 people in Northern Ireland are set to benefit from a pay boost as the UK Government moves to end discriminatory age bands and unfair pay.
Around 3 million workers benefited from last year’s decision to include the cost of living in the Low Pay Commission’s remit for the first time. This 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.
Higher wages for the lowest-paid workers not only provide greater financial security for families but also mean more money in the pockets of working people to spend on the things they need.
The updated LPC remit will advance the Government’s commitment to delivering a single adult pay band and eventually end the practice of younger workers being paid less for performing the same or similar minimum wage roles.
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.
Speaking after the announcement, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said: “Having started my working life on low pay I know the difference a good, fair wage can make, and delivering this is a non-negotiable priority for this government as set out in our manifesto.
“This is a government on the side of workers in Northern Ireland. Our landmark plan to Make Work Pay has already delivered one of the biggest pay boosts on record – and up to 170,000 people in Northern Ireland have seen the benefit.
“With this remit, we are backing the lowest-paid workers in Northern Ireland, getting more money into working people’s pockets, and raising living standards in every part of the UK as part of our Plan for Change.”
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 will put forward recommendations on achieving a single adult rate in the years ahead.
The remit will also ensure that the LPC continues to actively consider the cost of living in its recommendations for National Living Wage rates to apply from April 2026.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said: “We are delivering on our promise to make sure every worker receives a fair wage.
“Fair pay, which supports working families, is integral to our Plan for Change, because when working people are properly rewarded with more money in their pockets, businesses thrive and our entire economy benefits.
“To ensure the right balance is struck between the needs of workers, business affordability, and the wider economy, the LPC is being asked to consult on several issues before recommending the new rates.”
TUC General Secretary, Paul Nowak 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.
“The minimum wage has been one of the big success stories of the last 25 years – lifting pay at the bottom and proving the doom-and-gloom merchants wrong. But it’s important that it keeps rising so that it better reflects what it actually costs to get by in Britain today.
“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.”
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