Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We all would like to see a move to a living wage. I have some sympathy for the Government in this regard in relation to the 30 cent proposed increase. The convention has been since 2015 that the Low Pay Commission recommendation is accepted by Government. Far be it for me to speak for the Low Pay Commission, but it may very well be that when the commission was considering its recommendation and the data, because there is an evidence-based approach to the recommendation in terms of the setting of the minimum wage, it may not have had the up-to-date information that we have now on the trends in relation to inflation. I am sure that is something the Low Pay Commission will return to when appropriate.

It is fair to say that many, if not all, of us around the table would like to see the national minimum wage be converted to a living wage for all. The Low Pay Commission can only look at the data that it has at that time. I imagine that when it was considering its recommendation to the Government about what the hourly minimum wage should be next year, the rate of inflation was nowhere near what it is at present.