The budget deficit in the United Kingdom reached a record high last month. Public finances came under further pressure from the cost of measures to protect households and businesses against high energy bills.
The government also spends much more on paying interest on its debts.
The budget deficit is now 27.4 billion pounds. The British statistics agency announced that that is almost triple compared to a year earlier. At that time, the deficit was still 10.7 billion pounds. So the deficit is much larger than economists assumed.
The United Kingdom has been struggling with major economic problems for some time and is expected to enter a recession this year. As a result, tax revenues will decrease further, and deficits will increase even further.
The country has also been struggling with national strikes for some time, including those at the railways and hospitals. It will continue next month with a significant civil servants’ strike. They demand higher wages because of sky-high inflation.
