UK Government’s Borrowing In August Highest Since COVID

Government borrowing in August rose to its highest level for the month since the COVID pandemic in 2021.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) monitors the UK government's spending plans. I Photo: Office for Budget Responsibility X

Official figures show that borrowing—the difference between government spending and tax revenue—reached £13.7 billion last month, £3.3 billion more than in August of last year, Michael Race reported for BBC News.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that while tax income "grew strongly," this was offset by increased benefit payments and higher spending on public services, including workers’ pay.

The figures come as the government prepares for the upcoming Budget at the end of October, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer warning that it will be "painful."

The government has acknowledged that some taxes will need to rise, but it has promised to maintain its manifesto pledge not to increase the burden on "working people," ruling out increases to VAT, national insurance, or income tax.

Public borrowing for the first five months of the financial year has reached £64.1 billion, approximately £6 billion more than forecasts by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which monitors the UK government's spending plans.

The increase in borrowing has pushed the national debt to 100% of the UK's annual economic output, a level last seen in the early 1960s.