UK borrowing hits record £16.2bn in September

The UK government borrowed a record £16.2bn in September to repair the nation's finances, a figure which surprised economists.

Coming ahead of the Chancellor's Spending Review this afternoon, during which he is expected to unveil savage fiscal cuts, the figure shows the gap between government spending and income is growing. Last month's figure tops the £14.8bn of government borrowing in September last year, and was higher than economists had predicted. UK net debt now stands at 57.2% of GDP, its highest level to date. Over the course of this financial year, so far the Government has borrowed £73.5bn. This compares to a total £154.6bn borrowed over the course of the last full financial year. The Office for ...