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UKH has criticised the government’s latest announcement that the National Living Wage will rise 10% and 28p more than originally planned, saying that this increase will have a “knock-on” effect on businesses already struggling with costs.
Yesterday, the government announced that the NLW will increase to £11.44 from April 2024, rising from its current level of £10.42.
In the same announcement it was made clear that 21 and 22-year-olds will also receive the same NLW for the first time ever, in a bid to bring nearly three million more people into the wage bracket.
Kate Nicholls, CEO of UKH, said: “If businesses are expected to deliver these wage levels, there must be action to drive down costs in other areas. The first priority on that list needs to be extending business rates relief and freezing the multiplier at the Autumn Statement.
“Without action on business rates tomorrow, many businesses will not even make it to April to deliver these wage increases and jobs will be lost. That scenario benefits no one.”
She added: “In the longer term, stronger consideration needs to be given to a lower rate of VAT for hospitality to create a more sustainable tax burden for a sector that employs 3.5 million people and delivers £93bn to the economy.”
