To: All UK Media

Refer to the Living Wage As The So-Called Living Wage

Just as the BBC currently refers to Islamic State as "so-called Islamic State" to highlight the gulf between the distorted image their chosen name is intended to convey and the reality (i.e. that they are neither a state nor Islamic in any sense that genuine Muslims would recognise or respect), all UK media should refer to the newly introduced National Living Wage as the "so-called National Living Wage" or "so-called Living Wage" in recognition of the same disparity that exists between the Government's version of the National Living Wage and the genuine National Living Wage as independently calculated by the Living Wage Foundation.

Why is this important?

For the obvious reason that anything that describes itself as a living wage should actually BE a living wage. Otherwise it distorts public perceptions of the extremely important issue of low pay that still adversely affects millions of people in the UK. No government should be allowed to gain political capital by wilfully misusing a term that has a precise and specific meaning. Any increase to the minimum wage is, of course, welcome, but to term something a living wage when it falls considerably short of being one is ultimately counterproductive; it strongly suggests that no further action is required to combat the problem of low pay and that's certainly not the case!

You can read more about the difference between the Government's so-called Living Wage and the genuine Living Wage here:

http://www.livingwage.org.uk/what-living-wage