UK NEWS

HOUSEHOLD DEBT COULD REACH £100,000

True level of Government debt could be £100,000 per household, it is claimed

Tuesday October 21,2008

Gordon Brown's bank bail-out plan could drive the true level of Government debt to nearly £100,000 for every household, it has been claimed.

The state is set to owe a total of £2,354 billion - some 61% more than the UK's annual GDP.

The estimates were produced by Tory MP Brooks Newmark in a study for right-leaning think-tank the Centre for Policy Studies.

He claimed that, including PFI projects, unfunded public sector pension liabilities, Network Rail debt and the nationalisation of Bradford and Bingley, "real" Government debt is currently £1,854 billion.

That would make it three times higher than official figures suggest, and around £75,984 for every household.

However, adding up to £500 billion from the banking bail-out takes levels to £2,354 billion, or £96,475 for each household.

The claim emerged after official data showed Government borrowing hitting a 60-year high last month, up to £8.092 billion compared to £4.775 billion in September last year.

The amount borrowed so far this financial year stands at £37.6 billion - the highest since records began in 1946.

However, the Prime Minister has insisted that the UK's overall debt levels are lower than in most other industrialised nations, and the Government will borrow more to stave off the effects of the economic downturn.