2024 Government Borrowing Flashcards
How much interest does the government pay on the national debt every year
£111 billion
To whom does the government owe all that money?
Gilts are mainly bought by financial institutions in the UK and abroad, such as pension funds, investment funds, banks and insurance companies
How does the aging of a population affect government tax, spending and borrowing?
In an ageing population, the proportion of people of working age drops, meaning the government takes less in tax while paying out more in pensions.
How does the UK national debt compare with the debt of other European countries?
As a percentage of GDP UK national debt in 2023 was lower than in Greece, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, and Belgium but higher than in Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark (and slightly higher than the EU 27 average)
How much does the UK government spend on education every year?
In 2022–23, total public spending on education in the UK stood at£116 billion(including the cost of issuing student loans and in 2023–24 prices). In real terms, this represents an 8% or £10 billion fall since 2010–11.
How much does the UK government spend on health every year?
The Department of Health and Social Care’s budget in 2022/23 was£181.7 billion. The vast majority of this spending (94.6%, or £171.8 billion) was on day-to-day items such as staff salaries and medicines.
How much does the UK government spend on defense every year?
In the 2023/24 financial year, the UK spent £54.2 billion on defence.
This is expected to rise to £57.1 billion in 2024/25, which is a 4.5% increase in real
terms.
As a member of NATO, the UK is committed to spending 2% of GDP on defence
expenditure that meets NATO’s definition. The latest NATO figures show that
the UK spent an estimated 2.3% of GDP on defence in 2023.
