Close our purse strings

Prime Minister David Cameron announces that Britain will donate a further £814million of taxpayers’ money to a child vaccine programme run by Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, taking the country’s total contribution to £1.5billion. He told a conference at a five-star hotel (natch) in London that people should be "proud" of the Coalition’s pledge to increase aid spending by 34 per cent to more than £12billion.

As well as being more than five times the £274million pledged by the U.S., it is more than 30 times higher than Germany’s £44million and almost 50 times the £30million given by Spain. Japan gave just £5.5million, while China gave nothing.

Raj Shah, the head of the U.S. Agency for International Development, said that America could not afford to give more because it was facing a "very difficult budget environment".

No kidding? Our "donation" would be all very laudable if the country was not financially bankrupt. We simply cannot afford to be the world's nurse as well as its traffic warden.

Why do the "great and the good" love grandstanding with otehr people's money? Lord Coe told a radio audience that he believed most Londoners were happy to pay for the Olympic Games - he has obviously not spoken to the Londoners I know. We didn't want it and certainly don't want to pay for it.

Gordon Brown paid untold millions just so that he could have his picture taken with Nelson Mandela. Now his successor at Number 10, a millionaire many times over, is giving away more of our money at the time people are fearful of a double dip recession that will lead to more unemployed, more homeless and more misery.

Enough is enough. Charity begins at home, Mr Cameron.