No help on energy bills beyond VAT cut if Sunak becomes PM

‘There is no time to design something else,’ ex-chancellor tells Andrew Neil

Andrew Neil interviewed Rishi Sunak on Channel 4 on Friday night (PA)

Rishi Sunak has warned households braced for rocketing autumn energy bills to expect no more help beyond a £150 VAT cut if he wins the race for No 10 – because there will be no time to act.

The former chancellor defended his plan to scrap VAT – a policy he previously attacked as ineffective – on the grounds there would be no other “levers” to pull before charges soar in October.

“There is no time to design something else that would be a more perfect way of helping people – you've got to work with what you've got,” he argued.