Public borrowing in the United Kingdom rose sharply in December, to a higher level than expected, increasing pressure on the Labor government, which is trying to restore confidence despite difficult economic indicators. These borrowings reached 17.8 billion pounds (21 billion euros) in December, or 10.1 billion more than a year earlier, according to figures released Wednesday by the National Statistics Office (ONS).
These are the “third highest on record in December”underlined Jessica Barnaby, deputy director of public finances at the ONS. This figure is bad news for the Minister of Finance, Rachel Reeves, who has been trying to reassure the markets since the presentation at the end of October of her first budget, made heavy tax increases and exceptional loans to invest, which has not not convinced the companies.
The minister, faced with sluggish growth, had to face at the start of the year a spectacular weakening of the pound and a sharp rise in debt borrowing rates – to a level not seen for more than 25 years for the long-term one- which have since relaxed. “Our tax rules are not negotiable” et “we will keep an iron fist on public finances”reacted the Chief Secretary of the British Treasury, Darren Jones, to the ONS publication.
-Over the nine months from April to December, public borrowing amounted to 129.9 billion pounds, or 8.9 billion more than the same period last year. The tax year runs from April to March in the United Kingdom. The public budget forecasting body OBR is due to present economic forecasts for the financial year on March 26 which will indicate whether the government is succeeding in complying with its borrowing rules.
Swiss
