Budget delivers large increases in spending, tax, and borrowing

31st October 2024

The OBR Figures are out now.

The Budget increases spending by £70 billion annually, with two-thirds on current and one-third on capital spending. Half is funded through tax increases which raise £36 billion annually and push the tax take to a historic 38 per cent of GDP.

The rest is funded by £32 billion more borrowing annually which temporarily boosts GDP growth to 2 per cent in 2026, but leaves output unchanged in the medium term.

New fiscal rules, to balance the current budget and get net financial liabilities falling relative to GDP in five years, are met by small margins of £10 and 16 billion respectively.