How much is the minimum wage going up?

From 1 April, employees aged 21 and over are entitled to the National Living Wage.The rate is increasing to £11.44 an hour, up from £10.42 an hour. The Real Living Wage - a higher amount voluntarily paid by some UK businesses - remains the same. From 1 April, the National Minimum Wage applies to younger employees between the ages of 16 and 20It will be £640 an hour, up from £5.28. The government says this is the largest ever cash increase to the minimum wage. If all salaries were arranged in order, the median wage would be the one at the middle point - with half above and half below. It is a criminal offence if employers fail to pay the correct National Minimum and Living Wages to their workers.

The rates apply to staff even if they are not paid by the hour. There are less than the equivalent National Minimum or Living rate. Any employer not paying the correct amount can be fined by HMRC. The Real Living Wage is aimed at UK workers aged 18 and over. It is not a legal requirement, and businesses choose whether or not to pay it. More than 460,000 employees working for 14,000 firms currently receive it. The rate for workers in the capital - sometimes called the London Living Wage - is £13.15 an hour.

The National Minimum Wage came into force under the Labour government in 1999.It started at £3.60 for those 22 and older, and £3 for 18-21 year olds. The Conservative government introduced the National Living Wage for workers aged over 25 in 2016. It was initially set at £7.20 - 50p more than the National Minimum wage.