I am concerned about the concept of a ‘realistic living wage’. It is obvious to me that different people, in different circumstances, need vastly different living wages. The minimum wage law takes this into account, in a basic crude fashion, by introducing a sliding scale of minimum wage based on age, with the full amount kicking in at twenty two.

But even for an adult, a single person has a very different wage requirement from somebody supporting a (non-earning) partner and children. And if there are two wage earners in a relationship, surely they don’t need to earn as much individually as a single earner with dependants?

The minimum wage doesn’t take into account the geographic disparities in the cost of living. Or the dynamics of the labour market. I find it hard to support a law that gives a one-size-fits-all solution, where people’s needs are so different.

(And when a company’s choice is between solvency or insolvency, or between employing staff or making them redundant, I find your suggestion about ‘altering the business model’ to be somewhat flippant.)