
UK borrowing rises more than expected, putting pressure on Rachel Reeves
Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show public sector net borrowing rose to £20.7bn. This was £6.6bn higher than the same month a year earlier and the second-highest June borrowing figure since monthly records began in 1993. City economists had forecast borrowing to increase to £16.5bn.
It comes as Reeves prepares for a tough autumn budget amid mounting speculation over the need for large tax rises to cover a multibillion-pound shortfall in the public finances after the government's high-stakes welfare U-turn earlier this month.
Ministers have warned of 'financial consequences' after the backtracking on disability benefits and winter fuel payments for pensioners, which will cost more than £6bn.
Alongside a sluggish economic outlook and possible downgrade in productivity forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility at the autumn budget, economists have warned Reeves could face a £30bn shortfall against her fiscal rules.
The UK economy shrank for two consecutive months in April and May, while unemployment and inflation have risen, as businesses and households come under pressure from tax rises, elevated borrowing costs, and global uncertainty amid Donald Trump's trade war.
Reeves has faced growing demands from Labour backbenchers, unions and the former party leader Neil Kinnock to consider introducing a wealth tax. However, the chancellor has so far sought to keep her options open while pushing to reassure business leaders that her priority remains driving up economic growth.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies said on Monday there was a 'strong case' for the chancellor to tweak her self-imposed rule, which requires day-to-day spending to be matched by receipts by the fifth year of official forecasts.
Sign up to Business Today
Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning
after newsletter promotion
More details soon …
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Independent
9 minutes ago
- The Independent
The pub and bar chain thriving thanks to warm weather
Mitchells & Butlers, the pub and bar group, reported a significant boost in customer numbers and strong performance. The owner of Toby Carvery and All Bar One saw like-for-like sales increase by 5 per cent in the quarter ending 19 July. This growth was partly attributed to recent sunny weather and Easter, with both food and drink sales climbing by nearly 5 per cent. Despite facing cost inflation challenges, the company anticipates its annual results will reach the "top end" of industry forecasts. M&B has converted or remodelled 150 venues and opened two new sites this year, though its shares experienced a slight dip in early trading.


Scotsman
9 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Edinburgh transport convener bidding to be Labour candidate at next year's Scottish Parliament elections
Edinburgh council's Labour transport convener Stephen Jenkinson is bidding to stand for election to the Scottish Parliament. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... And he will be up against Lothian list MSP Foysol Choudhury in the battle to become the male candidate for either Edinburgh Northern or Edinburgh South Western in next year's Holyrood elections. Under the party's system to achieve gender balance, the two seats have been twinned. Together, the local parties will vote to select one man and one woman - and whoever gets the most votes chooses which seat they stand in. Stephen Jenkinson and Foysol Choudhury will go head to head | collage Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad There is a shortlist of two men and two women. Cllr Jenkinson and Mr Choudhury will go head to head for the male nomination. Cllr Jenkinson took over as the Capital's transport convener a year ago, replacing Scott Arthur who won Edinburgh South West for Labour at the general election, helped by Cllr Jenkinson who acted as his election agent. Mr Choudhury was elected as a Lothian Labour MSP at the last Scottish Parliament elections in 2021. And the contest to be the female candidate is between local activist Rebecca Bell and Catriona Munro, who stood in the recent Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart council by-election, coming top in first preferences but narrowly losing to the Lib Dems when votes were redistributed. The selection process is due to be completed in the week beginning August 11.


Times
10 minutes ago
- Times
Fears grow about lack of London Stadium naming rights deal
A naming rights deal for the London Stadium looks as elusive as ever after venue chiefs admitted there was 'a significant risk' that no sponsor will be found before 2028. The owners of the stadium, which is occupied by West Ham United for most of the year, have been unable to secure a deal to reduce the venue's losses despite previously claiming one was imminent. The risk of a continuing failure is spelt out in the draft annual report of the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), which owned the stadium until March, when it transferred to be directly under the Greater London Authority. The report also reveals that Lyn Garner, the LLDC's chief executive until March, received a £228,000 payoff for stepping down from the position on top of her £304,000 salary, only to be appointed as the chairwoman of the London Stadium's new board. 'Lyn's full-time role as chief executive of LLDC became redundant after a restructure and she received compensation in line with policy and procedures,' a GLA spokesman said. 'Her role at the London Stadium is part-time and is a non-executive role. Her appointment was made in line with policy and she brings a wealth of skills and experience to leading the London Stadium board.' Five other LLDC executives also received payoffs of between £91,000 and £151,000. In early 2023, Garner told the London Assembly she was 'very confident' that it would finally agree a naming rights deal for the loss-making stadium that year but it never happened. West Ham have to agree to any deal and the club shares any income worth more than £4million a year. Meanwhile, West Ham are still in a dispute with the London Stadium owners over who should pick up the costs of staging matches involving their Women's Super League (WSL) team. The club's 2013 concession agreement to use the stadium — labelled as the 'deal of the century' by one London Assembly member — makes the venue's owners responsible for paying costs such as stewarding, security and electricity, which are thought to be about £100,000 for a Premier League match. West Ham are understood to have offered to pay some of the costs for staging a WSL match there — and make a financial loss in doing so — but that offer has not been accepted by the London Stadium. 'We cannot ask London's taxpayers to subsidise the cost of West Ham putting on these matches,' a London Stadium spokesman said. Plans in place for Lionesses parade The FA has pencilled in a victory celebration in central London for Tuesday should England overcome Spain in the Women's Euro 2025 final on Sunday. The plan is understood to include a parade in the capital with a gathering in or near The Mall for the players to display the trophy, but the FA is keeping its cards close to its chest so as not to distract from preparations for the final in Basel, Switzerland. Top teams to cash in with new TV deal The Premier League's new television deal, which starts next month, will mean 70 more matches a season are shown live — which is likely to mean even more money for the top teams. Clubs are paid a 'facility fee' for every live match they take part in and last season each match was worth £890,000. Liverpool, the champions, earned £24.9million and Ipswich Town, who finished 19th, the minimum figure of £8.9million. Next season, every Premier League match will be live on TV apart from those played at 3pm on Saturday, so that will guarantee a facility fee for all clubs whose games are moved due to them playing midweek fixtures in Europe. The plus side for the smaller clubs is that they should also get more money, but just not as much as the bigger ones. Triathlon trouble World Triathlon's reputation has been dealt a serious blow after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that Uruguay's executive board member, Líber García, breached its anti-corruption policy in the lead up to last year's presidential election. It found that García had implied to Australia's Michelle Cooper, a rival candidate to the eventual winner Antonio Fernández Arimany, that she would lose her place on the board if she did not withdraw from the contest. Britain's candidate for the election, Ian Howard, whose campaign was backed by £12,000 of public funding from UK Sport, told World Triathlon's congress in October: 'We stand at a crossroads, you can choose more of the same and see the reputation of our federation increasingly damaged: unholy alliances, dodgy deals, dirty tricks.' 'Emperor' Infantino Football's international players' union, Fifpro, has accused Fifa and its president, Gianni Infantino, of 'autocratic' leadership. 'Football needs responsible leadership, not emperors,' Fifpro said in a statement after a meeting of 58 national player unions, in response to Fifa announcing an agreement with unrecognised player representatives. Infantino hosted that summit in New York but Fifpro and the English PFA — who have ongoing legal action against Fifa in the European courts — were not invited.