Government debt in the United Kingdom reached over 2.8 trillion British pounds in 2024/25, compared with 2.69 trillion pounds in the previous financial year. Although debt has been increasing throughout this period, there is a noticeable jump between 2019/20, and 2020/21, when debt increased from 1.82 trillion pounds, to 2.15 trillion. The UK's government debt was the equivalent of 95.8 percent of GDP in 2024/25, and is expected to increase slightly in coming years, and not start falling until the end of this decade. Public finances in a tight spot With government debt approaching 100 percent of GDP, the UK finds itself in a tricky fiscal situation. If the UK can't reduce it's spending, or increase its revenue, the government will have to continue borrowing large amounts, increasing the debt further. Adding to the problem, is the fact that financing this debt has got steadily more expensive recently, with the government currently spending more on debt interest than it does on defence, transport, and public order and safety. Can the UK grow out its debt? After the Second World War, when the national debt reached over 250 percent of GDP, the UK managed to reduce its debt-to-GDP ratio, due to the economy growing faster than its debt over a long period of time. This is certainly the hope of the current Labour government, who are seeking to avoid significant tax and spending adjustments by strengthening the economy. Overdue investments in infrastructure and increased capital spending may eventually achieve this goal, but the government's declining popularity suggests they may not be in power by the time these policies might eventually bear fruit.

Public sector net debt amounted to 95.8 percent of gross domestic product in the United Kingdom during the 2024/25 financial year, or 90 percent when the Bank of England is excluded. UK government debt is at its highest levels since the early 1960s, due to a significant increase in borrowing during the COVID-19 pandemic. After peaking at 251.7 percent shortly after the end of the Second World War, government debt in the UK gradually fell, before a sharp increase in the late 2000s at the time of the global financial crisis. Debt not expected to start falling until 2029/30 In 2024/25, the UK's government expenditure was approximately 1.28 trillion pounds, around 44.7 percent of GDP. This spending was financed by 1.13 trillion pounds of revenue raised, and 151 billion pounds of borrowing. Although the UK government can still borrow money in the future to finance its spending, the amount spent on debt interest has increased significantly recently. Recent forecasts suggest that while the debt is eventually expected to start declining, this is based on falling government deficits in the next five years. Government facing hard choices Hitting fiscal targets, such as reducing the national debt, will require a careful balancing of the books from the current government, and the possibility for either spending cuts or tax rises. Although Labour ruled out raising the main government tax sources, Income Tax, National Insurance, and VAT, at the 2024 election, they did raise National Insurance for employers (rather than employees) and also cut Winter Fuel allowances for large numbers of pensioners. Less than a year after implementing cuts to Winter Fuel, the government performed a U-Turn on the issue, and will make it widely available by the winter of 2025.

This statistic shows the national debt of the United Kingdom from 2020 to 2024, with projections up until 2030. In 2024, the national debt in the United Kingdom was about 3.91 trillion U.S. dollars. Reduction of the national debt and recovery of the economy in the UK The debt of the United Kingdom, which amounted to around 1,600 billion pounds in 2014 - more than it has ever been - is projected to keep rising. Since the economic recession of 2007-08, economic growth in the United Kingdom has been slow, but it has been able to recover. In 2014, the United Kingdom recorded a 2.8 percent growth rate. Many believe that if the economy is stable, the government will reduce spending and not accrue any more debt, and it can indeed be seen that while government spending continues to increase, the gap between spending and revenue is projected to get smaller. If the government were to earn more than it spends, it could use the money left over to pay the national debt and start to reduce it. However, what is even more important is the size of the debt in relation to the size of the country's economy; if the debt grows slower than the economy, the debt to GDP ratio can still fall, despite a budget deficit. The ratio of government expenditure to GDP indicates that the economy is recovering at a faster rate than government expenditure, with the ratio decreasing significantly over the last decade and the national debt in relation to GDP being expected to decrease further as well - albeit slowly. This should help relieve concerns over the United Kingdom’s mounting debt, but for some debt reduction is just not fast enough.

The United Kingdom recorded a Government Budget deficit equal to 4.80 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - United Kingdom Government Budget - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The United Kingdom recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 95.90 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - United Kingdom Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The government of the United Kingdom borrowed approximately ****percent worth of its GDP in the 2024/25 financial year, compared with ****percent in 2023/24. In 2020/21, government borrowing reached *****percent of GDP, due to increased financial support to public services during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with reduced revenue because of societal lockdowns.

The United Kingdom: Government debt as percent of GDP: The latest value from 2023 is 100.6 percent, an increase from 99.42 percent in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 61.85 percent, based on data from 137 countries. Historically, the average for the United Kingdom from 1974 to 2023 is 55.6 percent. The minimum value, 27.72 percent, was reached in 1990 while the maximum of 107.64 percent was recorded in 2020.

The ratio of national debt to gross domestic product (GDP) of the United Kingdom amounted to about 101.23 percent in 2024. From 1980 to 2024, the ratio rose by approximately 58.71 percentage points, though the increase followed an uneven trajectory rather than a consistent upward trend. Between 2024 and 2030, the ratio will rise by around 4.83 percentage points, showing an overall upward trend with periodic ups and downs.The general government gross debt consists of all liabilities that require payment or payments of interest and/or principal by the debtor to the creditor at a date or dates in the future. Here it is depicted in relation to the country's GDP, which refers to the total value of goods and services produced during a year.

The government of the United Kingdom borrowed approximately 151.9 billion British pounds in the 2024/25 financial year. In 2020/21, government borrowing was over 314.6 billion pounds, due to increased financial support to public services during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with reduced revenue due to the lockdowns.

In September 2024, the national debt of the United States had risen up to 35.46 trillion U.S. dollars. The national debt per capita had risen to 85,552 U.S. dollars in 2021. As represented by the statistic above, the public debt of the United States has been continuously rising. U.S. public debt Public debt, also known as national and governmental debt, is the debt owed by a nations’ central government. In the case of the U.S., national debt is owed by the federal government to Treasury security holders. Generally speaking, government debt increases with government spending, and can be decreased through taxes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government increased spending significantly to finance virus infrastructure, aid, and various forms of economic relief. International public debt Venezuela leads the global ranking of the 20 countries with the highest public debt in 2021. In relation to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Venezuela's public debt amounted to around 306.95 percent of GDP. Eritrea was ranked fifth, with an estimated debt of 170 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. The national debt of the United Kingdom is forecasted to grow from 87 percent in 2022 to 70 percent in 2027, in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. These figures include England, Wales, Scotland as well as Northern Ireland. Greece had the highest national debt among EU countries as of the 4th quarter of 2020 in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. Germany ranked 13th in the EU, with its national debt amounting to 69 percent of GDP in the same time period. Tuvalu was one of the 20 countries with the lowest national debt in 2021 in relation to the GDP, while Macao had an estimated level of national debt of zero percent, the lowest of any country. The data refer to the debts of the entire state, including the central government, the provinces, municipalities, local authorities and social insurance.

Key information about UK Consolidated Fiscal Balance: % of GDP

• United Kingdom Consolidated Fiscal Balance recorded a deficit equal to 5.3 % of its Nominal GDP in Sep 2024, compared with a deficit equal to 5.9 % in the previous quarter
• UK Consolidated Fiscal Balance to GDP data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1987 to Sep 2024, with an average ratio of -3.5 %
• The data reached an all-time high of 2.2 % in Jun 2000 and a record low of -25.6 % in Jun 2020

• In the latest reports, UK National Government Debt reached 3,810.9 USD bn in Sep 2024
• UK Nominal GDP reached 786.4 USD bn in Mar 2023

Key information about UK External Debt

• United Kingdom External Debt reached 10,527.8 USD bn in Sep 2024, compared with 9,863.6 USD bn in the previous quarter.
• UK External Debt: USD mn data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1987 to Sep 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 11,995.8 USD bn in Mar 2008 and a record low of 908.7 USD bn in Mar 1987.

• In the latest reports of UK, Current Account recorded a deficit of 13.1 USD bn in Mar 2023.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) fell by 8.6 USD bn in Sep 2024.
• UK Direct Investment Abroad fell by 7.0 USD bn in Sep 2024.
• Its Foreign Portfolio Investment increased by 2.8 USD bn in Sep 2024.
• The country's Nominal GDP was reported at 786.4 USD bn in Mar 2023.

Public Sector Net Debt to GDP in the United Kingdom decreased to 96.30 percent of GDP in June from 96.60 percent of GDP in May of 2025. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for the United Kingdom Public Sector Net Debt To GDP.

The outstanding value of UK's general government debt securities has shown an upward trend from 2000 to 2024, rising from 294 billion British pounds in 2000 to over 2.5 trillion British pounds. The largest increase occurred between 2019 and 2020, when it went from 1.6 trillion to 1.9 trillion British pounds.

Graph and download economic data for Outstanding International Public Debt Securities to GDP for United Kingdom (DDDM06GBA156NWDB) from 1980 to 2020 about public, United Kingdom, debt, securities, and GDP.

Private Debt to GDP in the United Kingdom decreased to 75.70 percent in 2024 from 79.30 percent in 2023. United Kingdom Private Debt to GDP - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on August of 2025.

Interest Payments on Government Debt in the United Kingdom increased to 16428 GBP Million in June from 7625 GBP Million in May of 2025. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for the United Kingdom Interest Payments On Government Debt.

Presents the aggregate Public sector debt interest to revenue ratio (interest paid by the public sector (excluding public sector banks) less the property income received), for the financial years ending March 1947 to March 2019.