UK’s AAA rating under threat as borrowing rises

BRITAIN’S coveted AAA credit rating came under further pressure today after official figures showed another leap in public sector borrowing.

The figure, excluding financial interventions such as bank bailouts, was £15.4 billion in December, compared with £14.8 billion in the same month the previous year.

It is slightly worse than the £15.2 billion pencilled in by economists.

It comes after an unexpected increase in November, when borrowing rose

to £17.5 billion, up £1.2 billion from last year, after tax receipts

were dented by lower energy company profits.