LABOUR was accused today of kicking its manifesto promise to end “discriminatory” age bands in the national minimum wage into the long grass.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) announced that the Low Pay Commission has been asked to put forward recommendations “on achieving a single adult rate in the years ahead” this October.

Labour pledged to “remove discriminatory age bands” four years ago in its 2021 New Deal for Working People, keeping the policy when it published its Plan to Make Work Pay in June 2024.

Today, the DBT repeated that the age bands were “discriminatory” but said that the commission would only consult on how to scrap them “in the years ahead.”

Labour has “thrown young people under the bus,” Communist Party general secretary Rob Griffiths said.

“It’s yet another example of Labour kicking things into the long grass in the hope that workers will forget about its election pledges," he told the Morning Star.

“Labour is acting primarily in the interests of its big business paymasters.”

In April, the government narrowed the minimum wage gap between workers aged 18-20 and those aged over 21, going from £8.60 and £11.44 to £10 and £12.21 per hour.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said: “We are delivering on our promise to make sure every worker receives a fair wage ... the LPC is being asked to consult on several issues before recommending the new rates.”

Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds added: “This government’s Plan for Change will put money back in people’s pockets, with this new remit marking the next step in considering how we ensure a fair deal for our lowest paid workers while maintaining a competitive economy that boosts businesses and their employees alike.”

TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: “Boosting the minimum wage isn’t just good for workers — it’s good for business too.

“That’s why the government is right to set out its ambition to raise the floor of the minimum wage and end the outdated and unfair youth rates.”

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said: “We promised to make low pay a thing of the past, and deliver a wage people can live on, and that is exactly what this government is determined to deliver.”