National Minimum Wage

Debate between Rachel Reeves and Caroline Dinenage

Wednesday 15th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Reeves]

It is not just the Tories who should apologise; the Government’s junior coalition partners should apologise, too, because they were worried back then as well about the impact of the minimum wage. In 1994, their then leader attacked Labour’s

“umbilical attachment to a national, high-rate minimum wage”

and said that

“a national minimum would…force many on to the dole”.

The Liberal Democrats went into the 1997 general election with a manifesto commitment not to a national minimum wage but to a

“regionally variable, minimum hourly rate.”

Let us be grateful that they did not get their way. Despite the then Opposition fighting the legislation tooth and nail, line by line, clause by clause, using every trick in the book to slow, frustrate and obstruct its progress, the national minimum wage became law.

[Caroline Dinenage (Gosport) (Con)]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her fascinating history lesson. I wonder whether her bit of paper also says that 500,000 people lost their jobs under the previous Labour Government and whether she agrees that the announcement made this morning demonstrates the Government’s absolute commitment to ensuring that no employer will be able to exploit their employees by paying unfair wages.

[Rachel Reeves]

Two million jobs were created under the last Labour Government and employment reached a record high, so I am not sure where the hon. Lady gets her statistics from.

I have quoted the former leader of the Liberal Democrats but, back then, where was the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable)? He was nowhere to be seen in the debates. He was nowhere to be seen on the voting record. On Second Reading and Third Reading, he failed to vote. Apparently, he abstained because he had reservations about a minimum wage. Perhaps he will stand up today to profess his concern for the plight of the low-paid. I am happy to take an intervention from the right hon. Gentleman if he wants to make one.