Minimum wage in the U.K. currently sits at about $10 per hour, but that is likely to raise 10% before the end of the year as most major parties, including the Conservatives, call for an increase. The Conservatives were against the establishment of a minimum wage and against raising it until a little over a year ago, using much the same rhetoric used by conservatives in the U.S. The shift in highlights some of the more stark differences between the U.S. and U.K. now that both find themselves in similar recovery situations. The Low Pay Commission, a panel of nine experts from academia, business, and labor, will give its recommendation regarding the exact amount to raise the minimum wage by.
See "The minimum wage is set to rise in Britain. And Conservatives are all for it.", Griff Witte, The Washington Post, January 26, 2014