Minimum Wage - Going, Going.......

The Low Pay Commission has suddenly and rather conveniently decided that the minimum wage might be adversely affecting employment prospects for younger people. "This opinion is not actually based on any real evidence but we think it might be true," a Commission spokesperson said. "Now its true that minimum pay for over 21's is nearly double of that for under 21's, but there is clear evidence that businesses are selflessly electing to recruit over 21's because they really enjoy paying higher wages. We believe that this could be cured by paying everyone less thus making for a more level playing field. If people of all ages were paid lower rates - say £1 per hour - then youth unemployment would magically melt away." George Osborne told us; "This is great news for the British economy. Not only do we now know that making rich people richer is good for everyone, that taxing the rich actually returns less revenue and taxing poor people doesn't affect final demand, we now also know that paying people less money cures youth unemployment." The part-time Prime Minister, David Cameron, was particularly pleased. "When George told me about this I thought he'd been at the white powder again, but the CBI agrees so it must be true. As I told conference yesterday, we're firing up the engines of the economy even if the big ends have gone and we've emptied the fuel tank. I've always said that making the poor even poorer is a good idea and this proves it."