Will Labour borrow to invest Britain out of its ‘black hole’?
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Will Labour borrow to invest Britain out of its ‘black hole’?

The Independent  

There’s been frantic speculation, at least in those circles interested in such matters, that the government is set to revise the fiscal framework inherited from the Conservatives. At the moment, the projection sees debt falling by about £9bn in five years – Reeves’s margin of safety or “headroom”. Experts say that the most liberal redefinition of the national debt could yield Reeves another £67bn of “headroom” on the five-year horizon. The problem has been created by “current spending” – welfare payments, public sector wages – rather than capital spending, which should raise productivity and increase output and growth, and thus pay for itself in the longer run by making the economy bigger. Not if Reeves makes sure that her “borrow to invest” drive is fully transparent, with the borrowed money clearly directed to productive viable public infrastructure projects.

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History of this topic

ONS figures reveal surge in borrowing: does this mean taxes will have to rise again?
1 month ago

ONS figures reveal surge in borrowing: does this mean taxes will have to rise again?

The Independent  

The latest public sector borrowing figures are enough to have anyone inside 11 Downing Street heading for the drinks cabinet. The total came to £17.4bn in October; that’s £1.6bn more than this time last year, £5bn higher than City forecasts, and the second highest October number since monthly records began in January 1993. The government also spent £9.1bn on interest …

Interest on national debt tops £100bn a year as a result of Labour's Budget borrowing binge
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Interest on national debt tops £100bn a year as a result of Labour's Budget borrowing binge

Daily Mail  

Britain will spend more than half a trillion pounds servicing the national debt between now and the end of the decade, Budget documents reveal. The Office for Budget Responsibility said debt interest payments would total £672billion between 2024-25 and 2029-30 – or more than £100billion a year. Ball and chain: The Office for Budget Responsibility said debt interest payments will …

Public sector pay rises hand Reeves a £6.7bn headache ahead of Budget
2 months ago

Public sector pay rises hand Reeves a £6.7bn headache ahead of Budget

The Independent  

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Will Rachel Reeves’s creative accounting be enough to pull Britain out of its financial black hole?
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Will Rachel Reeves’s creative accounting be enough to pull Britain out of its financial black hole?

The Independent  

Speaking at a glassmaking factory in Cheshire on Friday, Keir Starmer promised to build two carbon capture and storage “clusters” on Merseyside and Teeside. The project will cost £21.7bn, with the promise that they will create 5,000 “good jobs”, boost the economies of the regions where they will be based, and help make Britain a green industry power. Mortgage rates …

Britain’s choice: spiralling debt, £40bn in spending cuts or tax rises every 10 years
3 months, 1 week ago

Britain’s choice: spiralling debt, £40bn in spending cuts or tax rises every 10 years

The Telegraph  

However, Mr Hughes rejected a suggestion by Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, that the soaring debt trajectory was purely down to the “shocking state that our public finances were left in by the previous government”. “Those are challenges that have faced successes in governments over extended periods.” Highlighting America’s rising debt trajectory, Mr Hughes added: “They’re not …

The UK economic outlook is bleak, think tanks warn, with tough choices for the next government
9 months, 2 weeks ago

The UK economic outlook is bleak, think tanks warn, with tough choices for the next government

Associated Press  

LONDON — Leading British economic think tanks warned Thursday that whoever wins the general election expected this year will face some very tough choices on tax and spending if they want to make sure the public finances don’t deteriorate further. After number-crunching Wednesday’s budget statement from Treasury chief Jeremy Hunt, which reduced a tax paid by employees on their earnings …

Britain’s debt timebomb is about to explode – and politicians are too timid to defuse it
1 year ago

Britain’s debt timebomb is about to explode – and politicians are too timid to defuse it

The Telegraph  

300 years of borrowed money It was exactly the fear of this sort of behaviour that caused the House of Commons to give away its right to initiate spending in 1706. After all, there’s a good chance they won’t be in office when the bill eventually comes due – and an even lower one if they start to impose fiscal …

Inside Jeremy Hunt’s £100bn-a-year battle with Britain’s ballooning debt pile
1 year ago

Inside Jeremy Hunt’s £100bn-a-year battle with Britain’s ballooning debt pile

The Telegraph  

Either way, the outlook may not be as bright as Hunt would like you to believe. He said economic growth was likely to remain anaemic in the short term, with the UK suffering an “unpleasant” combination of high interest rates and low growth that made the outlook for the UK economy worse compared with other rich economies. And so the …

The U.K. is staring into an economic abyss
2 years, 2 months ago

The U.K. is staring into an economic abyss

The Hindu  

It took the new British Chancellor of the Exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng, just 25 minutes to unleash havoc when he unveiled his mini-Budget on September 23. In place of policies to boost the United Kingdom’s economy to achieve a promised 2.5% growth, the Chancellor offered promises of sunlit uplands simply as a result of reversing recent tax rises, abolishing the top …

Interest bill for UK's £2.4tn debt mountain more than DOUBLES to record £19.4bn in June
2 years, 5 months ago

Interest bill for UK's £2.4tn debt mountain more than DOUBLES to record £19.4bn in June

Daily Mail  

The government plunged deeper into the red today as interest on the £2.4trillion debt mountain hit an eye-watering new record. was more than double the same month last year, and a peak since records began in 1997 The debt interest costs in June dwarfed all previous monthly figures since records began in 1997 Mr Zahawi said: 'We recognise that there …

Government borrows more than a billion pounds PER DAY during coronavirus crisis
4 years, 2 months ago

Government borrows more than a billion pounds PER DAY during coronavirus crisis

Daily Mail  

The crippling impact of coronavirus on the public finances was laid bare today after new figures showed the government borrowed more than £208billion over six months. Another £36.1billion was borrowed in September - the third-highest month on record and compared to just £7billion a year ago - as tax revenues slumped and the Treasury poured out bailout money. Another £36.1billion …

British Public Debt Tops 2 Trillion Pounds for First Time Due to Covid-19
4 years, 4 months ago

British Public Debt Tops 2 Trillion Pounds for First Time Due to Covid-19

News 18  

Britain's public debt went above 2 trillion pounds for the first time in July as the government ramped up public spending to cope with the coronavirus pandemic and tax revenues fell, official data showed on Friday. Net debt, excluding public banks, rose to 2.004 trillion pounds, up by nearly 230 billion pounds from July 2019 and equivalent to 100.5% of …

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