§ Dr. CableTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will quantify the impact of a minimum wage increase to(a) £4, (b) £4.50 and (c) £5 per hour on (i) employment, (ii) price levels and (iii) Government expenditure. [105916]
§ Mr. Alan JohnsonMeasuring the effect of hypothetical levels of the national minimum wage on employment, price levels and Government expenditure is a highly complex task and the impacts would be difficult to quantify. For the last nine months the Low Pay Commission has carried out a thorough empirical study of the impact of the actual minimum wage since its introduction, and that report will be published soon. Neither the Government nor the Low Pay Commission 45W has carried out detailed modelling on the scenarios given in the question, and could not do so except at a disproportionate cost.