The government will waive the VAT on sales from this year’s X Factor charity single which went on sale yesterday.

The department of health will make a one-off donation equivalent to the sum of the VAT receipts collected on sales of the song up to the end of December, to X Factor’s chosen charity, Together for Short Lives.

Together for Short Lives wrote to the Chancellor, George Osborne requesting for the VAT to be waived on the charity single.

VAT is waived on charity singles only in exceptional circumstances and the last time the Treasury did so was in 2010 when artists including Sir Paul McCartney and Robbie Williams recorded a cover version of REM’s 'Everybody Hurts' to raise money for those affected by the Haiti earthquake.

The 16 finalists along with JLS and One Direction have recorded 'Wishing on Star' originally by Rose Royce. All proceeds will go to the charity which provides care to children with critical or terminal conditions.

Watch the performance of the single on Sunday night's X Factor below: