Government payments to soften the impact of rocketing energy bills helped send UK public borrowing soaring to more than £27bn last month – the highest figure for December since modern records began 30 years ago.
The latest bulletin on the health of the UK’s finances from the Office for National Statistics showed government spending last month exceeded receipts by £27.4bn, £16.7bn higher than borrowing in December 2021. Tax receipts in December were up slightly in December 2021 at more than £74bn, but energy support added just over £9bn to public spending, according to the official data.
Read more here