INCREASING THE NATIONAL MINIMUM WAGE TO £10 PER HOUR

That this House congratulates the Trades Union Congress for passing a motion, proposed by the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union, committing itself to campaign for an increase in the National Minimum Wage to £10 per hour; notes that this would ease the burden on welfare spending by alleviating the need for in work benefits which subsidise exploitative employers paying poverty wages; further notes that this would free up funds for much-needed investment in the NHS, education and other welfare programmes; believes that action is needed to address the scandal that apprentices can be legally paid as little as £2.73 per hour and under-18s just £3.79 per hour; and considers that employers who claim to be unable to afford £10 per hour should be required to submit to an audit of their company profits, bonuses paid to senior executives and dividends paid to shareholders to ensure they are not out of line with employee rates of pay.