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Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 15 September 2026

Debate

Tax Burden and Economic Growth

Contribution

The new Chancellor has said that we will stand by the fiscal rules that were laid out at the start of this Parliament. The noble Lord is absolutely right about the debt servicing costs that we have to meet. One of the upsides—not of the debt but of what is happening—is that while borrowing was stuck at about 5% of GDP for the previous four years, it has fallen by 1% to its lowest level for six years, at 4.2%, in 2025-26. According to the IMF, this year, for the first time since 2004, we are forecast to be borrowing less than the rest of the G7 on average. We all know about the conflict in the Middle East and the impact that is having on debt not just in this country but around the world. However, we are setting a plan to ensure that we can lower that debt burden.

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