§ Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what the current minimum wage level is; and what plans she has to increase this amount; [32535]
(2) what the minimum wage is for employees under the age of (a) 21 and (b) 16 years; [32534]
(3) what account she has taken of regional differences in pay in setting the minimum wage; and what plans she has for setting different minimum wages for separate regions. [32536]
§ Alan JohnsonThe current minimum wage rates are £4.10 per hour for workers aged 22 or above and £3.50 per hour for workers aged 18–21 inclusive. The Government have agreed that, subject to economic conditions, these rates should increase on 1 October 2002 to £4.20 and £3.60 per hour respectively.
Workers below the age of 18 do not qualify for the national minimum wage. There are no plans to set different minimum wage rates for different regions.