LONDON, UK (Top40 Charts) - Band Aid is to receive all the VAT from sales of the Live Aid DVD and new version of 'Do They Know It's Christmas?'. The UK Treasury announced yesterday that all the VAT received will be refunded to the charity. Band Aid will receive an around �4m as a result. An estimated 500,000 copies of the DVD and 1 million copies of the record will be sold this Christmas. Chancellor Gordon Brown said: "Ever since its launch twenty years ago, Band Aid has had a huge impact, raising the plight of the world's poorest and raising funds to help them. I want to do everything I can to support their work and so people can buy the DVD and record this Christmas knowing that all the money they spend will go to support the vital work of the Band Aid Trust in the poorest countries of Africa." Bob Geldof said the move is a "remarkable gesture. It will be a hugely significant sum of money that will help alleviate the misery of the hungry in Africa." Bob Geldof added: "I was with child witches in the Congo two days ago and the telephone rang and it was Gordon Brown." "He said to me: 'Ah, Bob, hello, what about the VAT on the record?' I said: 'Yeah, I hadn't thought about that. I forgot all that stuff'." If the DVD of the historic concert sells 500,000 copies and the re-recording of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" sells 1million, the VAT refund will be �4 million. The Live Aid DVD is released yesterday (November 8). The Band Aid 20 single is to be recorded on Sunday (November 14) and released on November 29.
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