14. Weekly Newsletter

Pause on minimum wage rising

The British government has announced a shift away from using minimum wage increases to narrow income disparities, opting for a slower rise to alleviate pressure on employers following this year’s nearly 10% jump. In April, the minimum wage will increase next week by 9.8% to £11.44 per hour, affecting around 3 million workers and with potential side effects that will greatly impact businesses.

Jonathan Haskel at the Monetary Policy Committee stated that the increase would have a significantly “large spillover” on wages for staff across the board. Anyone already above minimum wage will also demand a pay rise, as they will feel entitled to proportionally earn more than their colleagues.

The Low Pay Commission believes that increases in minimum wage have not damaged jobs or sparked inflation, which was a potential concern for such a large increase. Other members of the committee also say that the focus should now shift to improving other areas of low-paid work, such as working conditions, intensity, and access to sick pay, which all need “improvement”.

Newspapers

Over the last seven days, the UK’s front page news cycle has covered varied topics. Labour plans to axe Hereditary peers in UK House of Lords, Scotland’s economic potential is blocked by a failing UK, and UK nuclear watchdog takes Sellafield operator to court over alleged IT breaches. Some of the newspaper headlines from this week were:

• Financial Times- ‘Official data confirms UK economy slipped into recession last year’
• Financial Times- ‘BoE rate-setter warns against rushing to cut interest rates’
• Financial Times- ‘Brexit red tape costs Scottish salmon producers millions, says trade body’
• Financial Times- ‘Sunak’s election hopes could be boosted by waiting until after US, say allies’
• Financial Times- ‘ Britain’s Brexit wine duty regime is ‘unworkable’, industry warns’
• The Times- ‘Avanti drivers were offered £100k a year — and suddenly trains resumed’
• The Guardian- ‘Fast fashion retailer Shein doubles profits as it awaits IPO approval’

UK nighttime economy takes a hit

Clubs, pubs, and music venues have taken a dip in revenues as young people are spending more selectively due to high costs, especially during the week. The number of pubs and nightclubs has decreased over the last decade, with many closures happening in areas with large student populations. This trend can be exemplified by the fact that there are 32% fewer nightclubs and 16% fewer pubs and bars in the UK compared with 2010 statistics. According to current data, weekday traffic for clubs and bars is 15% lower than pre-Covid levels. One way nighttime venues have responded to the struggles is “competitive socialising” with activities such as mini golf, bowling and axe throwing incorporated into the venues.