Chancellor gets pre-Budget boost
ONS figures show UK public finances are in better than expected health
Gordon Brown has received a boost ahead of his pre-budget report, with signs
that UK public finances are in better than expected health.
In the month of October, the public sector current budget was in surplus by
£4.1bn. At the same time last year, there was a deficit of £0.4bn.
The Office for National Statistics put last month’s improvement down to a
23.4% increase in corporation tax receipts.
Between April and October, the public sector recorded a deficit of £10.8bn,
down on £18.4bn for the corresponding period last year.