The national minimum wage for apprentices will increase in next April from £4.15 to £4.30 per hour.
The increase equates to a 3.6 per cent rise, and is in line with a recommendation from the Low Pay Commission.
Aside from the apprentice rate increase, the minimum wage for 18 to 20-year-olds will go from £6.45 per hour to £6.56; and the rate for 16 to 17-year-olds will rise from £4.55 to £4.62. The rate for 21 to 22-year-olds will increase from £8.20 to £8.36.
The national living wage for individuals aged 23 and over has been increased by 2.2 per cent, the government has announced, from £8.72 to £8.91.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak also confirmed in his spending review statement that the government will “improve the way the apprenticeship system works for business,” partly by applying a two-month extension to its scheme of cash bonuses for hiring apprentices until 31 March 2021.