Living wage ‘would boost Treasury’

Research by the TUC found that raising the pay of around 450,000 people in the region would increase the tax and national insurance going to the Treasury by £185m and reduce the benefits bill by £116m.

The living wage is supposed to more closely represent the cost of meeting minimum standards of living than the minimum wage.

Researchers have suggested the living wage outside London should be £7.65 per hour compared with the minimum wage for adults of £6.31.

Yorkshire and Humber TUC regional secretary Bill Adams said: “The UK is in the midst of a living standards crisis, and while the economy is slowly starting to recover, ordinary people are a long way from feeling any benefit.

“Money is so tight that any unforeseen expenses – like a winter coat for the children or repairing a broken cooker – are forcing families to borrow just to keep their heads above water.

“Of course not every employer can afford to pay their staff the living wage, but many more can. Increasing the number of people across Yorkshire and the Humber who are paid at least the living wage would mean huge savings for the public purse in extra taxes paid and fewer benefits claimed.”

York Council is among the region’s living wage employers.