asked the Minister for Finance the total Government borrowing per day for the current year up to the end of the third quarter; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Government Borrowing.
117.
Government net borrowing in the first three-quarters of the current year was £1,749 million, equivalent to £6.4 million per day. Of this £4.7 million per day is represented by the payment of interest on past debt. Only £1.7 million per day is for non-interest purposes.
This represents a considerable improvement on 1981 when 8½ per cent of GNP was being borrowed for new spending (i.e. non-interest purposes). Next year the Government plans a current budget deficit of 7.4 per cent of GNP and a total Exchequer borrowing requirement of a maximum of 11.8 per cent of GNP, of which 0.4 per cent of GNP approximately will be for non-interest purposes. I have invited all the opposition parties to state their view as to the appropriate percentage of GNP that should be represented by the 1987 EBR and current budget deficit.