A right-wing think tank argued yesterday that condemning young people to poverty pay would boost their job chances.

The Institute for Economic Affairs (IEA) called for the national minimum wage of £3.72 for under 18s and £2.68 for apprentices to be scrapped completely.

The ideological attack was launched on the 15th anniversary of the minimum wage.

The report claimed those tiny sums were to blame for youth unemployment and the zero-hours contracts crisis.

IEA director Mark Littlewood said: "Youth unemployment is still precariously high and the best way to combat this is to make young, unskilled workers more attractive to employers."

But the National Union of Students (NUS), which represents thousands of apprentices, said their basic wage rate in fact remained "shockingly low."

The union pointed to its own research which shows the current rate is a major deterrent for people interesting in taking up apprenticeships.

An NUS spokeswoman told the Star: "Apprentices have little disposable income and let's not forget that many have to pay to travel to work or to college.

"We've heard stories of apprentices who have to pay almost £10 a day to travel to work while on the apprentice minimum wage.

"How can anyone expect to live a decent life on such a low income?"

And National Union of Teachers deputy general secretary Kevin Courtney blasted the IEA report as "nonsense."

"These are backward looking proposals which would result in untold hardship for workers," Mr Courtney added.