CashNews.co
UK government borrowing reached £17.4bn in October, which was the second-highest level for the month since records began, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The figure was £1.6bn higher than the same month last year and came in higher than the £13.3bn forecast by many economists, according to Bloomberg.
Alex Kerr, UK economist at Capital Economics, said that these latest figures “underline the little wiggle room the chancellor has to significantly increase day-to-day spending”.
Since the start of the financial year, total borrowing costs stands at £96.6bn, which is £1.1bn more than the same period in 2023.
This is first look at public finances since chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered Labour’s first budget in 14 years at the end of October, in which she announced policies that increased spending by nearly £70bn a year.
Reeves announced £40bn in tax rises in the autumn statement to help fund spending and prior to the budget, had confirmed changes to fiscal rules that would allow for up to £50bn borrowing a year by the end of the decade.
However, the changes to public spending were higher than those rises in taxation, meaning that cumulatively borrowing is set to be £142bn higher than previously expected over the coming years to 2030.
The Office for Budget Responsibility said that this budget represented “one of the largest fiscal loosenings of any fiscal event in recent decades”.
ONS deputy director for public sector finances, Jessica Barnaby, said: