Budget deficit dealt blow as borrowing sees unexpected increase

CHANCELLOR George Osborne’s plan to bring down the budget deficit was dealt another blow today after it emerged borrowing unexpectedly increased last month.

Public sector net borrowing, excluding financial interventions such as bank bailouts, was £17.5 billion in November, up £1.2 billion on the same month last year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Economists had predicted borrowing would fall slightly to around £16 billion.

Meanwhile, updated gross domestic product (GDP) figures showed the economy did not grow quite as much as previously expected, with GDP revised down to 0.9% in the third quarter of the year, from 1%.