UK Debt Increases By £14.2 Billion In November 2015
The UK has done reasonably well in 2015 as unemployment rates dropped, average salary hikes increased and the economy has been rather stable when compared to a number of European Union countries. However one of the concerns for the United Kingdom will be the increase in its financial debt as the UK has been recorded of borrowing around 14.2 billion in November 2015.
Analysts in the UK had earlier estimated that the UK would borrow around £11.1 billion in 2015 but the UK had exceeded that number by nearly forty percent.
This amount is a lot higher than Chancellor George Osborne would have initially expected but the UK had to borrow a significantly higher amount in order to strengthen the country’s finances.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed that the overall debt that the UK had accumulated during 2015 stood at £66.9 billion and the public sector (not including banks backed by the state) had borrowed £1.3 billion in November 2015.
When compared to November 2014, the year to date borrowing is a lot better for the UK as the debt is lower by £6.6 billion in November 2015. However financial analysts are cautioning the chancellor about controlling borrowing or run the risk of exceeding his £73.5 billion target set for 2015. James Knightley, a financial analyst at ING stated that while monthly data is never 100 percent accurate, the UK will most likely end up borrowing an extra £5 billion over the specified target of £73.5 billion.
Osborne surprised a number of economists in the UK when he released his autumn statement that quoted independent forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). Those forecasts predicted that the UK would get into surplus mode by 2020 and also confirmed that public sector net borrowing would beat the 2015 target by the slimmest of margins. The OBR also promised the Osborne a £27 billion increase to public finances in the months to come.
John McDonnell, the shadow chancellor of the Labour party was skeptical about Osborne’s predictions. In a statement, McDonnell said
George Osborne promised in 2010 that this would be the year the books would be balanced and austerity would come to an end, but instead the year is ending with borrowing and debt both going up. With the national debt at over £1.5 trillion, the only plan George Osborne seems to offer is a privatisation of the public sector, and a fragile recovery based on high household debt and consumer credit.
