Government borrowing fell in the year to November as more money was raised from taxes and less was spent on the country’s debt interest payments, according to official figures.
Borrowing – the difference between spending and tax take – was £11.2bn last month, £3.4bn lower than the same month last year and the lowest November figure since 2021.
Debt interest was down £4.7bn to £3bn, mainly due to lower inflation.
The Office for National Statistics said the government also spent more cash on public services and benefit payments.
Borrowing was lower than expected, with economists predicting the figure to be around £13bn.
Ruth Gregory, deputy chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said “Christmas has come early” for Chancellor Rachel Reeves due to borrowing “undershooting” expectations.
But she added while the Chancellor would be encouraged by the latest figures, “weakening” in the UK economy meant there was a “growing chance” of further tax hikes or spending cuts.
Dennis Tatarkov, senior economist at KPMG UK, added the government had some “temporary respite” due to lower interest repayments, but warned the trend was “unlikely to last as actual and projected inflation has moved up in recent months”.
