National Minimum Wage Act 1998

5 The first regulations: referral to the Low Pay Commission

(1) Before making the first regulations under section 1(3) or (4) or 2 above, the Secretary of State shall refer the matters specified in subsection (2) below to the Low Pay Commission for their consideration.

(2) Those matters are—

(a) what single hourly rate should be prescribed under section 1(3) above as the national minimum wage;

(b) what period or periods should be prescribed under section 1(4) above;

(c) what method or methods should be used for determining under section 2 above the hourly rate at which a person is to be regarded as remunerated for the purposes of this Act;

(d) whether any, and if so what, provision should be made under section 3 above; and

(e) whether any, and if so what, descriptions of person should be added to the descriptions of person to whom section 3 above applies and what provision should be made under that section in relation to persons of those descriptions.

(3) Where matters are referred to the Low Pay Commission under subsection (1) above, the Commission shall, after considering those matters, make a report to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State which shall contain the Commission’s recommendations about each of those matters.

(4) If, following the report of the Low Pay Commission under subsection (3) above, the Secretary of State decides—

(a) not to make any regulations implementing the Commission’s recommendations, or

(b) to make regulations implementing only some of the Commission’s recommendations, or

(c) to prescribe under section 1(3) above a single hourly rate which is different from the rate recommended by the Commission, or

(d) to make regulations which in some other respect differ from the recommendations of the Commission, or

(e) to make regulations which do not relate to a recommendation of the Commission,

the Secretary of State shall lay a report before each House of Parliament containing a statement of the reasons for the decision.

(5) If the Low Pay Commission fail to make their report under subsection (3) above within the time allowed for doing so under section 7 below, any power of the Secretary of State to make regulations under this Act shall be exercisable as if subsection (1) above had not been enacted.