Minimum wage should be increased to £15 an hour as soon as possible, says TUC

Move opens new policy gap between unions and Labour party, which is reluctant to commit to specific figure under Keir Starmer

• Analysis: TUC picks opportune moment to call for rise in minimum wage

The minimum wage should be increased to 15 an hour as soon as possible to help millions of low-paid workers struggling amid the cost of living crisis, the TUC has said.

In a move that opens a fresh policy gap between unions and Keir Starmer's Labour party, the TUC has thrown its weight behind calls for a more ambitious legal floor on pay rates. The union body said the government needed to draw up plans to get wages rising as workers suffer the biggest hit to living standards on record.