Britain’s borrowing in the first seven months of the financial year was the highest on record except during the COVID pandemic, data published by the ONS on Friday (21 November) shows.
Borrowing – the difference between total public sector spending and income – was £17.4 billion in October 2025; this was £1.8 billion (or 9.6%) less than October 2024 but the third-highest October borrowing (not adjusted for inflation) since monthly records began in 1993, after those of 2024 and 2020.
Borrowing in the financial year to October 2025 was £116.8 billion; this was £9 billion (or 8.4%) more than in the same seven-month period of 2024 and the second-highest April to October borrowing (not adjusted for inflation) on record, after that of 2020.
The higher-than-expected borrowing will add extra pressure on Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who is expected to introduce a series of tax hikes in her Budget next week.
Speaking in a radio interview on Monday (10 November), the Chancellor said that she would set out the choices in the Budget and would not take ‘the easy route’ out.
“It would, of course be possible to stick with the manifesto commitments, but that would require things like deep cuts in capital spending, and the reason why our productivity and our growth has been so poor these last few years is because governments have always taken the easy option to cut investment in rail and road projects, in energy projects, in digital infrastructure.
“And as a result, we’ve never managed to get our productivity back to where it was before the financial crisis. So we’ve always got choices to make, and what I promised during the election campaign was to bring stability back to our economy, and what I can promise now is I will always do what I think is right for our country.”
She added her team is still going through the process at the moment of preparing the Budget and finalising what will be included.
“So those final decisions haven’t been taken yet, but as I take those measures, I will do what I believe is right for our country, and sometimes that means not always making the easy decisions, but the decisions that I think are in our national interest.”
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