Chancellor defends income tax cut U-turn

Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has confirmed he will not pursue cutting the 45p rate of income tax on people earning more than £150,000 a year.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Mr Kwarteng confirmed the U-turn 10 days after the plan was announced in the mini-budget. He said that the plans had become a "distraction from our overriding mission to tackle the challenges facing the country".

Just yesterday Prime Minister Liz Truss told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme that she was committed to the proposal.