HIGH STREET SPEND WORST FOR 15 YEARS

The VAT increase also made goods more expensive than last year, bringing a fall in spending of 0.7 per cent year-on-year.

Grocery sales did well, as people stocked up on the essentials. But while clothes and shoes picked up later on, beauty, furniture and other home goods stayed on the shelves.

Internet retailers were the main winners, as consumers opted for home delivery rather than venturing outside. The drop came after a buoyant December, leaving retailers with a big New Year hangover.

Stephen Robertson, head of the British Retail Consortium which produced the figures, said: “This is the worst January sales growth in the 15 years we’ve been running our survey.

“The coldest January since 1987 boosted food sales at the start of the month but sales melted with the snow.”