The issue, which at first appeared to be unimportant, was then taken up by several other newspapers and political commentators. They pointed out that the Conservatives seemed not to know that the pasty was a basic food eaten by many ordinary people in the country. The VAT rise on the pasty would affect both these customers and the pasty industry itself. These newspapers and commentators made fun of David Cameron's attempt to show himself as a regular pasty eater (i.e. as one of the people) and that George Osborne's did not know what a pasty was.