UK public borrowing tops £20bn in blow for Rachel Reeves
Government borrowing rose more than expected last month on the back of higher public sector spending and pay awards, dealing another blow to the chancellor before next month's spending review.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said a measure of public sector net borrowing grew to £20.2 billion, exceeding a forecast of £17.9 billion made by economists. April's figure is higher than the £19.2 billion recorded in the same month last year.
The UK's debt-to-GDP ratio hit 95.5 per cent, up by 0.7 percentage points over the same period last year. The budget deficit, which measures the difference between the government's spending and tax revenues, reached £70.3 billion last month, almost £10 billion higher than projections from the government's fiscal watchdog. Total government borrowing was
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