Resolution Foundation plays down fears over national living wage

Thinktank predicts one-in-four workers will benefit from new wage floor, with total wage bill rising by 1.5bn next year

UK employers will see their total wage bill rise by only 0.6% under the new "national living wage" - but the impact will be much bigger for a handful of industries, including retail and hospitality, according to a report.

The Resolution Foundation thinktank also found that small businesses with fewer than 10 employees face the biggest increase in their wage bill under the new minimum pay rates announced in George Osborne's summer budget.