Javid made the announcement at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester. He also said he would lower the age threshold for those who qualify from 25 to 21.

Javid said the policy would “help the next generation of go-getters to get ahead” and would make the UK “the first major economy in the world to end low pay altogether”.

The National Living Wage is an obligatory minimum wage payable to UK workers aged over 25. It came into effect on 1 April 2016 and the current rate is £8.21 an hour. But the Living Wage Foundation – which bases its figures on what people realistically need to live on –  says it should already be £9 across the UK and £10.55 for those in London.

Under 18s currently receive a minimum wage of £4.35 an hour, while those between the ages of 18 and 20 earn at least £6.15 an hour.

Last week the Trades Union Congress (TUC) claimed that one in five workers were skipping meals to make ends meet. It called for a £10 national minimum wage to be introduced.

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Labour has pledged to raise the National Living Wage to £10 an hour in 2020 and to include workers under 18.