LONDON: A rise in income tax and VAT receipts helped to cut UK government borrowing in May, official figures have shown.
UK government borrowing fell to £10.13bn in May, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, down from £12.35bn a year earlier.
It was the lowest borrowing figure in May for eight years.
Public sector net debt excluding public sector banks now stands at £1.5 trillion, the ONS said, which is 80.8% of gross domestic product (GDP).
“While the deficit in the financial year ending 2015 has fallen by more than a third since its peak in the financial year ending 2010, public sector net debt has maintained a gradual upward trend,” the ONS said in a statement.
Income tax receipts recorded their highest level for May in four years, rising £0.5bn, or 5.3%, from a year earlier to £10.8bn. VAT receipts rose by £0.6bn, or 5.6%, to £10.7bn.
The ONS also said that it now estimated total public sector borrowing in the financial year to March 2015 was £89.2bn, or 4.9% of GDP.
While this figure was slightly higher than the previous estimate, it was still £9.3bn lower than the previous year’s total.
