The Chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing a brutal challenge as the government has borrowed £18 billion in August, which is the highest in five years.
The last time borrowing was so high was during Covid in 2020 with the furlough programme, according to the Office for National Statistics.
National insurance and tax is “noticeably” higher compared to 2024, this was offset by higher spending on benefits, interest payments on debt and public services.
Reeves’s deputy, chief secretary to the Treasury, James Murray, said, “This government has a plan to bring down borrowing because taxpayer money should be spent on the country’s priorities, not on debt interest.
“Our focus is on economic stability, fiscal responsibility, ripping up needless red tape, tearing out waste from our public services, driving forward reforms, and putting more money in working people’s pockets.”
