Highest government borrowing figure in 5 years - latest ONS figures

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

52% : It meant there was an £18bn gap between government spending and income, a figure £5.25bn higher than expected by economists polled by Reuters.
51% : Responding to the figures, Ms Reeves's deputy, chief secretary to the Treasury, James Murray, said: "This government has a plan to bring down borrowing because taxpayer money should be spent on the country's priorities, not on debt interest.
49% : Government borrowing last month was the highest in five years, official figures show, exacerbating the challenge facing Chancellor Rachel Reeves Not since 2020, in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic with the furlough scheme ongoing, was the August borrowing figure so high, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

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