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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
National
Fionnula Hainey

Labour members back £15-an-hour minimum wage after resignation row

Labour is backing proposals to increase the minimum wage to £15-an-hour.

Party members voted in favour of a Unite motion calling for the increase at the Labour conference in Brighton.

It comes after Sir Keir Starmer found himself in a row with the left wing of his party over the issue.

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On Monday evening, Labour MP Andy McDonald resigned from his shadow cabinet position after saying the leadership had ordered him to argue against the rise to £15, making his position “untenable”.

Labour leader Sir Keir wanted to stick to plans to raise the minimum wage to at least £10-per-hour, before deciding an amount to pledge closer to the next election.

But now, Labour delegates in Brighton have voted in favour of the motion put forward by the Unite union, which Sir Keir did not get to vote on.

Should the minimum wage be raised to £15 an hour? Have your say below

Mr McDonald welcomed the move, tweeting: “I am overjoyed that the motion on workers’ rights has been passed unanimously at Conference.

“If the Labour leadership respects party democracy, then it must now honour the commitment to raising the minimum wage to £15 per hour & increasing statutory sick pay to a living wage.”

The current minimum wage is £8.91 per hour for those aged 23 and over, £8.36 for those aged 21 and 22, and £6.56 for 18 to 20-year olds.

According to the Mirror, Sir Keir does not regard the motion as binding - but is relaxed about it passing and agrees with most of its contents.

The £15 wage commitment was one element of a lengthy motion on workers' rights and fire and rehire.

Sir Keir has also angered the left by shelving Labour plans for the nationalisation of major energy firms, after committing to “common ownership” during the leadership campaign.

The Labour leader insisted common ownership and nationalisation are “worlds apart” and said the pledges he made to party members remain “values that I hold dear”.

“I never made a commitment to nationalisation, I made a commitment to common ownership,” he told the BBC.

“I stand by the principles and the values behind the pledges I made to our members, but the most important pledge I made was that I would turn it into a party that would be fit for government, capable of winning a general election, I’m not going to be deflected from that.”

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