LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s finance ministry fears government borrowing this year could hit a record 337 billion pounds due to the coronavirus, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported late on Tuesday, citing an internal government document.
Under a worst-case scenario, where the economy does not recover, borrowing could surge to 517 billion pounds compared with a forecast of just 55 billion pounds for 2020/21 as recently as March, the newspaper said.
Officials warned ministers that Britain could face a debt crisis if measures were not taken to stabilise borrowing, which would require 25-30 billion pounds of tax rises or spending cuts.
A finance ministry spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
The Telegraph quoted an unnamed finance ministry source as saying the document was a summary of policy options, and that no policy decisions had been taken.
(Reporting by David Milliken, editing by Estelle Shirbon)
