Agencies/London

Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday said he was ready to raise the minimum wage by an above-inflation 3%, in line with a recommendation made by the government’s advisers last month.
The Low Pay Commission has said the minimum wage should rise to £6.50, an increase above the rate of inflation for the first time in more than five years. “I look forward to accepting this recommendation,” Cameron said during a visit to the Midlands city of Coventry. “It means that as we recover from the great recession, hard-working people on the minimum wage - who have suffered during the tough times - can know they will share in the recovery.”
Once formally accepted by the government, the rise would take effect in October, around six months before the next general election in 2015 where living standards are likely to be a key issue.
The prime minister said he agreed that a rise to £6.50 should take place this October, in line with the advice of the Low Pay Commission, and after George Osborne said he ultimately wanted it to rise to £7.
In a speech on the economy just two weeks before the budget, the prime minister rejected criticism of his public spending cuts by senior members of the church, including Archbishop Vincent Nichols, and many Church of England bishops.
Cameron said it was wrong to let British taxpayers fund people to live a life “with no purpose, dependent on benefits” and to open the country’s borders to rapid immigration.
He said: “I don’t care whether you are the leader of the Labour party or the leader of the church, this kind of failure is just wrong.”