Public finances deteriorate in June
Brown’s Budget targets under threat
Gordon Brown’s control of the public purse strings has slipped in June after
figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that borrowing
rose to £7.3bn in June compared with £6.2bn during the same month last year.
These figures make it the worst June on record – the figures are
significantly higher than analysts’ forecasts of £6.5bn.
The chancellor said in his most recent Budget that he would meet his target
of cutting the current budget deficit to £7bn and public sector net borrowing to
£36bn.
Current borrowing for the year now stands at £16.4bn making that target seem
extremely unlikely.
Despite the ONS figures, a Treasury spokesman insisted it was meeting its
strict fiscal rules and would continue to do so.