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IEA Economics Fellow Julian Jessop responded to the latest statistics from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on government borrowing and debt 

“The April numbers were awful. UK government borrowing in April alone (£62.1bn) was almost as large as the deficit in all of last year (£62.7bn).

“A temporary increase in borrowing is a price worth paying to save lives and protect businesses and jobs from a one-off shock like coronavirus. But the government needs to wean the UK off this extraordinary level of state subsidy as soon as possible.

“This huge amount of intervention will distort the economy, undermine market incentives, and ultimately hold back the recovery.”

*Julian Jessop is available for interview and further comment.

NOTES TO EDITORS

For media enquiries please contact Emily Carver, Media Manager: 07715 942731.

For further reading:

• Model Behaviour: How economists can shape the post-lockdown world
• The Covid-19 debt crisis will be like no other in British history

The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems.

The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.

Public sector finances, UK: April 2020