Government wipes out budget deficit meeting George Osborne’s austerity deadline two years late
The dramatic improvement in the country’s finances means the Treasury is now 'in surplus' on the current budget
THE TORIES have wiped out the deficit on day–to–day Government spending – two years after a deadline set by George Osborne in 2010.
A dramatic improvement in the country’s finances meant the Treasury was “in surplus” on the so-called current budget – excluding capital investment – last year.
George Osborne hailed the achievement on Twitter – and was immediately backed by ex-Prime Minister David Cameron who said it proved his Government’s austerity programme “was the right thing to do”.
Paul Johnson, of the Institute of Fiscal Studies, told the FT: “It’s quite an achievement given how poor economic growth has been.
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“They have stuck at it, but deficit reduction has come at the cost of an unprecedented squeeze in public spending.”
At its height the current budget deficit hit £99.6 billion in 2009 and has fallen every year except 2012. In 2016 it was £20.7 billion but moved to a surplus of £3.8 billion in 2017, the FT reported.
Britain’s overall debts remain a whopping £1.7 trillion.
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