The responses to this consultation show general support for the draft consolidated regulations and agree that the detailed rules are clearer and more workable.
The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) launched this consultation in July 2014. It is a separate piece of work to the general consultation on the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and focused on a draft set of consolidated regulations to combine the 1999 NMW Regulations and the later amending Regulations and whether they would be clear and workable. Most respondents said that even greater clarity would be welcome, particularly in the guidance. BIS will consider the various suggestions raised by respondents and review the guidance in 2015.
Read the full consultation response .
National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015
29 January 2015
The draft National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015 consolidate the 1999 Regulations and subsequent amending regulations from 6 April 2015.
The 1999 Regulations set out detailed rules for determining whether a worker is paid the national minimum wage. Those regulations have been amended over 20 times since their introduction. The draft National Minimum Wage Regulations 2015 consolidate the 1999 Regulations and the subsequent amending regulations into a single instrument. The aim is making the rules clearer and more workable for employers and employees. There are changes made to reflect current drafting practices, including making provisions gender- neutral, to ensure that the rules are set out as clearly as possible. There are also changes made to the structure of the rules, including the use of shorter and more focused provisions, to make it easier for the reader to navigate. This instrument does not introduce substantive changes to the rules.
If readers are interested, the explanatory memorandum lists the 27 sets of regulations that are consolidated.
Council to cut business rates as incentive to pay the Living Wage
29 January 2015
Brent Council have become the first in the country to approve a scheme that offers business rates discounts as an incentive to pay the Living Wage.
The Living Wage Foundation reports that some of the capital's lowest-paid workers, in the borough which is home to the national football stadium, could get pay rises of around £2.50 an hour after the Brent Council cabinet approved to offer firms in the borough up to £5,000 off their business rates - if they become Living Wage accredited employers.
It is estimated that around 30% of Brent residents are currently earning less than the Living Wage.
Brent Council already pays all of its directly employed staff the Living Wage. But it has now been agreed to offer businesses a one-off discount on their business rate equivalent to five times the cost of being accredited as a Living Wage Employer by the Living Wage Foundation. The cost of being accredited varies depending on the size of workforce and the type of organisation but the maximum discount could be up to £5,000. In addition, Living
CIPP Policy News Journal
08/04/2015, Page 239 of 521
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