Cameron plans tax cuts for hiring unemployed

Leader of the opposition David Cameron has revealed that he plans to introduce tax cuts for businesses which hire from the jobless register.

Speaking to the BBC's Breakfast television programme, Mr Cameron said the Conservatives would introduce a £2,500 national insurance reprieve for those businesses which gave jobs to unemployed individuals.

At present, there are 1.8 million people out of work in the UK - which will no doubt rise with the onset of recession - with Mr Cameron claiming that jobseekers' allowance costs each taxpayer £8,000 annually.

The Conservative leader told the programme's presenter: "Instead of spending… money on unemployment benefit… spend it on giving companies a tax break to take people off the unemployment register."

He added that by reducing a company's national insurance bill by £2,500, the proposal was not only helping people back into work, but also made it easier for firms to hire employees.

Following Labour's recent victory in the Glenrothes by-election, foreign secretary David Miliband said it was "game on" in regard to the two parties' attempts to outflank one another regarding tax cuts.