NI retail body: VAT cut a €13.9bn waste

The British government’s £12.5bn (€13.9bn) VAT cut to stimulate consumer spending was a complete and utter waste of money and has done nothing to help businesses in the North, a retailers body claimed today.

Chancellor Alistair Darling’s decision to temporarily reduce the rate from 17.5% to 15% last year did little to save the local shop owners who have been forced to close as a result of the recession, according to the Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association.