Still evidence-based? The role of policy evaluation in recession and beyond:

The case of the national Minimum Wage

 an article by Tim Butcher (Low Pay Commission) published in National Institute Economic Review Volume 219 Number 1 (January 2012)

Abstract

This article explains the role of evidence in determining the recommendations made by the Low Pay Commission (LPC) for the National Minimum Wage (NMW). First, it sets out the process of recommending the minimum wage including the role of evidence. Second, it summarises the evidence available on the impact of the minimum wage before discussing how that evidence has informed the recommendations for the adult rate of the minimum wage in the LPC’s reports. It concludes by assessing the extent to which the NMW might be regarded as a success and considers whether the recent financial crisis will alter the evidence-based approach so far adopted by the LPC.

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