Labour ministers spent more than £35,000 on beer mats in pubs to promote the recent minimum wage increase. The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) spent £35,580 – more than the annual salary of many teachers and nurses – for its awareness campaign. This hefty figure bought around 500,000 beer mats that were sent to 1,000 pubs across the UK to make workers aware of the wage increase, MailOnline reports.

The mats were printed in bright colours with the message “millions got a pay rise” plastered across them. Beneath this, it told people to check if they were “getting paid correctly” by visiting the Government’s website. Employment rights minister Justin Madders called the campaign “a unique opportunity to engage audiences in a social, high-dwell environment”.

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He called pubs places “where financial conversations naturally occur” and so “this setting encourages discussion and word-of-mouth sharing about rate changes”.

The beer mats were distributed with a focus on areas that have a high number of people reporting being underpaid.

Mr Madders explained: “Our distribution partners delivered directly to selected venues in these priority locations to maximise campaign effectiveness and reaching those directly eligible for the increase in the wage and those who could share this important information with friends and family members.”

He also revealed the stunning £35,000 price tag to Tory MP Richard Holden, who sent him a written parliamentary question.

A band 1 NHS nurse earns £24,465 a year, while a newly qualified band 5 NHS nurse now earns £31,048. A band 6 nurse gets £38,682 yearly, while a band 9 nurse gets £109,179 yearly.

He said: “The cost to advertise in pubs using beer mats was £35,580, which was approved at official level. The 2024 campaign saw an increase in reach to eligible workers.

“However, recognition remained low, reinforcing the need for bolder, more engaging formats for the 2025 campaign, which expected to deliver an estimated 3.2 million impressions.”

April 2025 brought an increase to minimum wage for people aged 21 and over, from £11.44 an hour to £12.21 an hour. For 18 to 20-year-olds, the figure rose from £8.60 an hour to £10 an hour.