Public Sector Finances, January 2016

19 Feb 2016 03:21 PM

Main points

• Public sector net borrowing excluding public sector banks decreased by £10.6 billion to £66.5 billion in the current financial year-to-date (April 2015 to January 2016) compared with the same period in the previous financial year.
• Public sector net borrowing excluding public sector banks was in a surplus of £11.2 billion in January 2016, a £1.0 billion greater surplus compared with January 2015.
• Self-assessed income tax receipts increased by £0.2 billion to £12.4 billion in January 2016 compared with January 2015. The proportion of self-assessed income tax recorded in January and February can vary year-on-year and it is therefore advisable to consider data for the 2 months (January and February) together.
• Public sector net debt excluding public sector banks at the end of January 2016 was £1,581.6 billion, equivalent to 82.8% of Gross Domestic Product; an increase of £52.7 billion compared with January 2015.
• Central government net cash requirement decreased by £19.7 billion to £41.6 billion in the current financial year-to-date (April 2015 to January 2016) compared with the same period in the previous financial year.
• This month’s bulletin includes the impact of the reclassification of English private registered providers of social housing (referred to in this bulletin as housing associations) from the private to the public corporation sector for the first time.
• Due to the volatility of the monthly data, the cumulative financial year-to-date borrowing figures provide a better indication of the progress of the public finances than the individual months.

Get all the tables for this publication in the data section of this publication.