1. Main points
UK general government gross debt was £2,365.4 billion at the end of Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2022, equivalent to 99.6% of gross domestic product (GDP).
UK general government deficit (or net borrowing) was £15.8 billion in Quarter 1 2022, equivalent to 2.6% of GDP.
The general government gross debt and deficit figures published here (for 1997 onwards) are fully consistent with those published in our Public sector finances, UK: May 2022 statistical bulletin, published on 23 June 2022.
In this release, we present statistics for the general government sector. These are used for international comparisons and include central and local government only. The public sector finances release has a wider scope, adding data for other public sector bodies, including public corporations, public sector pensions and the Bank of England.
2. Government debt
| Quarter | 2020 Q2 | 2020 Q3 | 2020 Q4 | 2021 Q1 | 2021 Q2 | 2021 Q3 | 2021 Q4 | 2022 Q1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debt (£ billion)¹ | 2,069.3 | 2139.0 | 2,204.8 | 2,223.0 | 2,296.4 | 2,332.9 | 2,382.8 | 2,365.4 |
| Debt (as % GDP)² | 94.5 | 98.8 | 102.5 | 103.8 | 103.0 | 102.7 | 102.8 | 99.6 |
Download this table Table 1: General government gross debt
.xls .csv
Figure 1: Debt as a percentage of GDP in Quarter 1 2022 was 4.2 percentage points less than in Quarter 1 2021 but 16.8 percentage points more than in Quarter 1 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic
General government gross debt as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP), UK, at the end of Quarter 1 (March) 2019 to the end of Quarter 1 (March) 2022
Source: Office for National Statistics – UK government debt and deficit
Notes:
Debt is recorded as at the end of each calendar quarter.
GDP – gross domestic product.
Download this chart Figure 1: Debt as a percentage of GDP in Quarter 1 2022 was 4.2 percentage points less than in Quarter 1 2021 but 16.8 percentage points more than in Quarter 1 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic
Image .csv .xlsFinancial year and calendar year data for general government debt can be found in our government debt and deficit table.
Latest comparison with the EU member states
Figure 2: UK debt as a percentage of GDP is currently 11.8 percentage points above the EU average
General government gross debt as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP), UK and EU member states, at the end of Quarter 1 (March) 2022
Source: Office for National Statistics – UK government debt and deficit, Eurostat
Notes:
GDP – gross domestic product.
EU 27 - Average of the 27 EU member states.
Download this chart Figure 2: UK debt as a percentage of GDP is currently 11.8 percentage points above the EU average
Image .csv .xlsLatest comparison with G7 member states
Figure 3: UK general government gross debt as a percentage of GDP at the end of December 2021 was lower than the G7 average
General government gross debt as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP), at the end of December 2021, UK, EU and G7 member states
Source: Office for National Statistics, International Monetary Fund – World Economic Outlook April 2022
Notes:
GDP – gross domestic product.
EU 27 – Average of the 27 EU member states.
G7 – Group of Seven.
Debt is recorded as at the end of December of each calendar year.
The latest available data for all G7 member states.
Download this chart Figure 3: UK general government gross debt as a percentage of GDP at the end of December 2021 was lower than the G7 average
Image .csv .xlsAn international comparison of general government gross debt as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) can be found in our general government debt and deficit as percentage of GDP – Annex A.
Back to table of contents3. Government deficit
| Quarter | 2020 Q2 | 2020 Q3 | 2020 Q4 | 2021 Q1 | 2021 Q2 | 2021 Q3 | 2021 Q4 | 2022 Q1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deficit (£ billion)¹ | 130.9 | 76.5 | 62.9 | 45.1 | 65.4 | 41.3 | 31.1 | 15.8 |
| Deficit (as % GDP)² | 27.0 | 14.3 | 11.2 | 8.1 | 11.4 | 7.1 | 5.1 | 2.6 |
Download this table Table 2: General government deficit
.xls .csv
Figure 4: Deficit as a percentage of GDP Quarter 1 2022 was 5.5 percentage points lower than Quarter 1 2021, but 4.4 percentage points higher than in Quarter 1 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic
General government deficit (net borrowing) as a percentage of GDP, UK, Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2019 to Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2022
Source: Office for National Statistics – UK government debt and deficit
Notes:
- GDP - gross domestic product.
Download this chart Figure 4: Deficit as a percentage of GDP Quarter 1 2022 was 5.5 percentage points lower than Quarter 1 2021, but 4.4 percentage points higher than in Quarter 1 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic
Image .csv .xlsFinancial year and calendar year data for general government deficit can be found in our government debt and deficit table.
Latest comparison with the European Union member states
Figure 5: UK deficit as a percentage of GDP in Quarter 1 2022 is slightly lower than the EU average
General government deficit (net borrowing) as a percentage of GDP, UK and EU member states, Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2022
Source: Office for National Statistics – UK government and deficit, Eurostat
Notes:
GDP – gross domestic product.
EU 27 - Average of the 27 EU member states.
Download this chart Figure 5: UK deficit as a percentage of GDP in Quarter 1 2022 is slightly lower than the EU average
Image .csv .xlsLatest comparison with G7 member states
Figure 6: UK deficit as a percentage of GDP in 2021 was 0.5 percentage points lower than the G7 average
General government deficit as a percentage of GDP, 2021 calendar year, UK, EU and G7 member states
Source: Office for National Statistics, International Monetary Fund – World Economic Outlook April 2022
Notes:
GDP – gross domestic product.
Calendar year represents the period of January to December.
EU 27 – Average of the 27 EU member states.
Group of Seven (G7) – Average of the Group of Seven member states.
The latest available data for all G7 member states.
Download this chart Figure 6: UK deficit as a percentage of GDP in 2021 was 0.5 percentage points lower than the G7 average
Image .csv .xlsAn international comparison of general government deficit as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) can be found in our general government debt and deficit as percentage of GDP – Annex A.
Back to table of contents4. UK government debt and deficit data
General government debt and deficit as percentage of GDP: Annex A
Dataset | Released 29 July 2022
International comparison of general government debt and deficit as percentage of GDP.
Government debt and deficit
Dataset | Released 29 July 2022
Summary, reconciliation, and revisions information on UK government deficit and debt figures by calendar year, financial year and quarterly intervals, since the last publication.
General government main aggregates: ESA Table 2
Dataset | Released 29 July 2022
Breakdown of general government expenditure (both current and capital) and general government revenue, compiled according to the European System of Accounts.
General government quarterly non-financial accounts: ESA Table 25
Dataset | Released 29 July 2022
Breakdown of general government expenditure (both current and capital) and general government revenue, compiled according to the European System of Accounts.
General government quarterly financial accounts: ESA Table 27
Dataset | Released 29 July 2022
Complete set of quarterly financial accounts of the general government sector and its sub-sectors, compiled according to the European System of Accounts.
General government quarterly debt (Maastricht debt): ESA Table 28
Dataset | Released 29 July 2022
Summary of government debt on a quarterly basis, for general government and its sub-sectors, compiled according to the European System of Accounts.
5. Glossary
General government
UK general government consists of two sub-sectors: central government and local government.
Debt
Debt represents the cumulative amount the general government sector owes to organisations in other UK sectors and overseas institutions, which is largely a result of government financial liabilities on the bonds (gilts) and Treasury bills it has issued.
Deficit
Deficit (or net borrowing) measures the gap between total revenue and total spending. A positive value indicates borrowing while a negative value indicates a surplus.
Back to table of contents6. Measuring the data
The UK government debt and deficit statistical bulletin is published quarterly in January, April, July and October each year. This coincides with the publication of equivalent data for EU member states.
Revisions since previous publication
The revisions between releases are usually the result of improved departmental (and other government bodies’) data replacing previous estimates.
The government debt and deficit table presents the revisions to our main aggregates since the last publication of the UK government debt and deficit return (published on 29 April 2022). These revisions are consistent with revisions incorporated within our May 2022 Public sector finances statistical bulletin.
Our public sector finances revisions policy provides information on when users of the statistics published in the Public sector finances and in our UK government debt and deficit statistical bulletins should expect to see methodological and data-related revisions.
Back to table of contents7. Strengths and limitations
To supplement this release, we publish an accompanying methodological guide and Quality and Methodology Information outlining the strengths, limitations, and appropriate uses of government finance statistics.
Comparability with monthly public sector finances
The general government debt and deficit figures published in this statistical bulletin (for the time period 1997 onwards) are fully consistent with those published in our Public sector finances, UK: May 2022 statistical bulletin on 23 June 2022.
There are two main differences between the headline debt and deficit measures published in the public sector finances and those published in this bulletin.
Firstly, this bulletin includes only the debt and deficit of central and local government bodies. The public sector finances’ measures also include the debt and deficit of other public sector bodies, including public non-financial corporations and the Bank of England.
Secondly, this bulletin reports gross debt, while the focus of the public sector finances is net debt. Gross debt represents only the financial liabilities (debt securities, loans and deposits) of central and local government, while net debt deducts any liquid assets (official reserve assets and other cash or cash-like assets) from these financial liabilities.
Comparability with gross domestic product (GDP)
GDP data at market prices used to calculate government gross debt and deficit as a ratio of GDP are fully consistent with those published in our GDP quarterly national accounts, UK: January to March 2022 on 30 June 2022.
Comparability with EU member states
The general government debt and deficit figures used in the comparison of each of the 27 member states are fully consistent with those published in the Eurostat Government Finance Statistics – quarterly data: Quarter 1 2022 on 21 July 2022.
Comparability with G7 member states
The general government debt and deficit figures used in the comparison of G7 member states are fully consistent with those published in the International Monetary Fund’s World Economic Outlook on 19 April 2022.
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