Bob’s Rant : Borrowing Billions: The UK's Debt Spiral Under Rachel Reeves

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Rachel Reeves' economic stewardship stands at a critical crossroads as the UK plunges deeper into a fiscal nightmare. June 2025's borrowing figures tell a devastating story: £20.7 billion borrowed in a single month—the second highest June figure since records began in 1993—and a shocking £6.6 billion increase from the previous year.

This isn't an isolated incident. The government consistently overshoots borrowing projections, with the financial year ending March 2025 exceeding OBR forecasts by a staggering £14.6 billion. Despite these alarming trends, the Chancellor clings to her fiscal rules while ignoring the economic reality. Her promise that growth will solve everything rings hollow as the UK economy contracted for two consecutive months this spring.

The debt service burden has become a financial black hole, consuming £111 billion annually—over 8% of government spending. Most troubling is that 77% of current borrowing merely services existing debt, creating a vicious cycle that Reeves appears unwilling to address honestly. Her autumn budget, which raised employer national insurance by £25 billion, was meant to stabilize finances but instead strangles businesses and consumer confidence.

Political U-turns on winter fuel payments and disability benefits have blown a £6 billion hole in her budget, while her refusal to consider wealth taxes raises questions about whose interests she truly serves. The OBR's projection of a potential £30 billion shortfall against her fiscal rules should sound alarm bells, yet the Chancellor remains dogmatically committed to a failing strategy.

As the UK's debt-to-GDP ratio climbs to 96.3%, levels not seen since the 1960s, working families face the prospect of "austerity on steroids" unless Reeves acknowledges these challenges and develops a more realistic approach. The question remains: will she recognize the looming economic catastrophe before it's too late?

Episode Transcript

Speaker 0 (00:00):
Chancellor Rachel Reeves' handling of the UK's
spiralling borrowing figures isa masterclass in fiscal
mismanagement.
A reckless gamble thatthreatens to plunge the nation
deeper into a debt quagmire.
Today's news lays bare the grimreality.
Public sector net borrowing forJune 2025 soared to £20.7
billion, a staggering £6.6billion higher than last year

(00:25):
and the second highest Junefigure since records began in
1993.
This isn't just a blip.
It's a neon warning sign of agovernment careening toward
financial ruin.
Under Reeves' watch, the Officefor Budget Responsibility
projected £143 billion inborrowing for the 2025-26

(00:47):
financial year, a figure alreadydwarfed by the trajectory of
overshoots reported monthly.
April's borrowing hit £20.2billion, £2.3 billion above
forecasts and February's £10.7billion overshot predictions by
£4.1 billion.
The financial year ending March2025 saw borrowing reach £151.9

(01:14):
billion, £14.6 billion morethan the OBR's already grim
estimate.
Yet Reeves clings to hernon-negotiable fiscal rules
balancing day-to-day spendingwith revenue by 2029-30 and
reducing debt as a share of GDP,while the numbers scream that
her strategy is crumbling.

(01:34):
What's most galling is theChancellor's apparent denial of
the crisis, claiming economicgrowth will save the day,
despite the UK economy shrinkingfor two consecutive months in
April and May 2025.
Her autumn budget, which hikedemployer national insurance
contributions by £25 billion,was sold as a stabilising force,

(01:59):
yet it's strangling businessesand sapping consumer confidence.
The OBR warns of a potential£30 billion shortfall against
her fiscal rules, exacerbated byglobal trade uncertainties and
rising borrowing costs.
Yet Reeves doubles down,refusing to revisit her ironclad
constraints.
The cost of servicing thenational debt is a fiscal black

(02:21):
hole, swallowing £111 billionannually, over 8% of government
spending and nearly 4% of GDP.
A jaw-dropping 77% of thisyear's borrowing is earmarked
for interest on past debts avicious cycle that Reeves seems
content to perpetuate.
Her response A half-hearted nodto potential tax heights or

(02:44):
spending cuts, while ruling outfurther borrowing or broad tax
increases, boxing herself into acorner where public services
face the axe.
The Institute for FiscalStudies rightly calls her out
for this self-inflicted trap,noting that easy or risk-free
options are in short supply.
Easy or risk-free options arein short supply.
Reeves' U-turns, likebacktracking on winter fuel

(03:06):
payment cuts and disabilitybenefit reforms, have blown a £6
billion hole in her budget,further eroding her credibility.
Her refusal to consider wealthtaxes, despite pressure from
Labour's own ranks, smacks ofpandering to business elites,
while ignoring the workingfamilies she claims to champion.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Strideaptly calls her borrowing

(03:35):
alarming, accusing her ofspending money she doesn't have.
The Chancellor's mantra ofborrowing to invest is a hollow
promise when the OBR itselfadmits her measures will barely
nudge GDP growth by 1.5% over 50years, potentially turning
negative by 2028.
Her policies are crushinggrowth, fuelling inflation and
burdening taxpayers, with a debtinterest bill projected to hit

(03:56):
£130 billion.
Reeves' failure to confront thishead-on, hiding behind trade
deals and infrastructurepromises that won't materialise
for years, betrays a lack ofvision and courage.
As the UK's debt-to-GDP ratioclimbs to 96.3%, levels not seen
since the 1960s, reeves' legacyrisks being one of fiscal chaos

(04:19):
.
Her dogmatic adherence toflawed rules, coupled with a
refusal to adapt to adeteriorating economic outlook,
is steering Britain towardausterity on steroids.
Working families alreadyreeling from tax hikes and
stagnant growth will pay theprice for her hubris.
This isn't leadership, it's aslow-motion disaster.