Government borrowing has exceeded official forecasts by more than £20 billion so far this year, increasing the pressure on Rachel Reeves ahead of next week’s spring statement.
In February, the government borrowed £10.7 billion, the fourth-highest total for the month since records began in 1993 and higher than analysts expected, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Friday.
That deficit figure took total public borrowing in the year to February to £132.2 billion, £20.4 billion higher than the £111.8 billion forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) at the October budget and up by £14.7 billion over the same period last year.
The chancellor is set to announce billions of pounds of public spending cuts at the spring statement next Wednesday.
