Cameron angry at “criminal” VAT cut

Monday 5th January 2009, 10:05AM GMT.

Cameron angry at David Cameron has said the 2.5 per cent VAT cut introduced in December was a “criminal waste of money”.

The Conservative leader is expected to attack the government’s policies aimed at alleviating pressure on Britain’s recessionary economy in a speech in London this lunchtime.

Speaking on the Today programme, he said the government “may as well have gone out and burned the money” when assessing the impact of the reduction in VAT from 17.5 per cent to 15 per cent.

This will continue for a 13-month period until the end of the year but ministers are already downplaying its significance, Mr Cameron claimed, suggesting even the prime minister feels it is not making a real difference.

“The 2.5 per cent cut in VAT was a complete joke,” he said.

“I feel like shaking the prime minister sometimes and saying, ‘look, what don’t you get?’ It’s a credit crunch. That’s what needs to be addressed. Stop wasting our money cutting VAT… and get with the programme.”