Public sector finances, UK: April 2025

• Borrowing – the difference between total public sector spending and income – was £20.2 billion in April 2025; this was £1.0 billion more than in April 2024 and the fourth-highest April borrowing since monthly records began in 1993.
• Borrowing in the financial year ending (FYE) March 2025 was provisionally estimated at £148.3 billion; this is £3.7 billion lower than our initial estimate published in April 2025 and is now £11.0 billion more than the £137.3 billion forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
• The current budget deficit – borrowing to fund day-to-day public sector activities – in the FYE March 2025 was provisionally estimated at £70.3 billion; this is £4.3 billion lower than our initial estimate published in April 2025 and is now £9.6 billion more than the £60.7 billion forecast by the OBR.
• Public sector net debt excluding public sector banks was provisionally estimated at 95.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) at the end of April 2025; this was 0.7 percentage points more than at the end of April 2024 and remains at levels last seen in the early 1960s.
• Public sector net financial liabilities excluding public sector banks were provisionally estimated at 83.5% of GDP at the end of April 2025; this was 3.3 percentage points more than at the end of April 2024, but 12.0 percentage points less than for public sector net debt.
• Central government net cash requirement (excluding UK Asset Resolution Ltd and Network Rail) was £15.8 billion in April 2025, £2.6 billion less than in April 2024.

Initial estimates show that the public sector spent more than it received in taxes and other income in April 2025, requiring it to borrow £20.2 billion.

This was £1.0 billion more borrowing than in April 2024. It is also the fourth-highest April borrowing since monthly records began in 1993, behind April 2020 and 2021 borrowing, during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic period, and April 2012 borrowing, largely because of costs related to the privatisation of Royal Mail.

Public sector net borrowing includes two broad components: the current budget and net investment.

The current budget, which is usually in deficit, can be considered as borrowing to fund day-to-day public sector activities. This is the difference between its current receipts and current expenditure, while taking account of capital consumption (depreciation).

Initial estimates show that in April 2025, the current budget was in deficit by £13.9 billion. This was £0.4 billion less than in April 2024.

Public sector net borrowing is the sum of the current budget deficit and the public sector’s net (capital) investment.

Net investment was estimated at £6.2 billion in April 2025, which was £1.4 billion more than in April 2024.

A breakdown of net borrowing by subsector and a summary of central government receipts and expenditure data are presented in Tables 1 to 3 in our Public sector finances summary tables: Appendix M dataset.

Central government borrowing

Central government forms the largest part of the public sector and includes government departments such as:

• HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
• Department of Health and Social Care
• Department for Work and Pensions
• Department for Education
• Ministry of Defence
• other government agencies

The relationship between central government’s receipts and expenditure is an important determinant of public sector net borrowing. Of the £20.2 billion borrowed by the public sector in April 2025, central government borrowed £26.9 billion, partially offset by surpluses in other subsectors.

Central government current receipts

Central government’s current receipts were £82.9 billion in April 2025, £5.1 billion more than in April 2024. Of this £5.1 billion increase in income:

• central government tax receipts increased by £3.6 billion to £62.1 billion; this included increases of £1.7 billion in Income Tax, £0.5 billion in Value Added Tax (VAT), £0.5 billion in tobacco duty, £0.4 billion in stamp duty (on land and property), and £0.2 billion in Corporation Tax receipts
• compulsory social contributions increased by £1.7 billion to £14.7 billion; on 6 April 2025 changes to the National Insurance contributions paid by employers came into effect

A detailed breakdown of central government income is presented in our Public sector current receipts: Appendix D dataset.

Central government current expenditure

Central government spending data for April 2025 are provisional. There is uncertainty around these estimates until more detailed departmental information becomes available over time.

Central government’s current expenditure was provisionally estimated as £93.9 billion in April 2025, £4.2 billion more than in April 2024. Of this overall £4.2 billion increase in spending:

• central government departmental spending on goods and services increased by £4.2 billion to £37.9 billion, as pay rises and inflation increased running costs
• net social benefits paid by central government increased by £1.3 billion to £26.8 billion, largely caused by inflation-linked increases in many benefits and earnings-linked increases to state pension payments
• central government debt interest payable decreased by £0.5 billion to £9.0 billion, largely because the interest payable on index-linked gilts rises and falls with the Retail Prices Index (RPI)
• payments to support the day-to-day running of local government decreased by £0.5 billion to £15.5 billion; these intra-government transfers are both central government spending and a local government receipt, so they have no effect on overall public sector borrowing
• payments abroad decreased by £0.4 billion to £0.3 billion, largely because of smaller net payments made to the EU

Central government net investment

Central government net investment was £12.2 billion in April 2025, £5.3 billion less than in April 2024.

This decrease was largely because of a £7.3 billion reduction in the quarterly payment from HM Treasury to the Bank of England (BoE) Asset Purchase Facility (APF) Fund compared with a year earlier. These intra-public sector transfers have no impact on overall public sector borrowing because they are recorded as both central government spending and BoE receipts.

Borrowing in other subsectors

Our Public sector finances borrowing by subsector: Appendix R dataset provides further detail on data presented in Table 1, including transactions related to borrowing by each subsector and their contribution to total public sector borrowing in a matrix table format. The time period presented in the matrix table can be changed using the drop-down box feature.

Interest payable on central government debt

The interest payable on central government debt was £9.0 billion in April 2025, £0.5 billion less than in April 2024.

The interest payable on index-linked gilts rises and falls with the Retail Prices Index (RPI), adding volatility to central government debt interest costs. This additional RPI inflation-linked interest is described as “capital uplift” and affects the value of the gilt principal.

Capital uplift was £3.7 billion in April 2025, largely reflecting the 0.6% increase in the RPI between January and February 2025. This decreased the capital uplift on the three-month lagged index-linked gilts, which make up around 95% of the index-linked gilt stock.

Figure 2 shows this series as the light blue portion of each stacked bar. It excludes the uplift payable at the time of an index-linked gilt redemption. These redemption payments are already recorded as accrued interest payable across the life of each index gilt.

For further details of our approach, see our Calculation of interest payable on government gilts methodology.

The public sector spent more than it received in taxes and other income in the financial year (FYE) to March 2025. Provisional estimates show it borrowed £148.3 billion over the 12-month period; this is £3.7 billion lower than our initial estimate published in April 2025.

Borrowing in the FYE 2025 is currently estimated to be £17.2 billion more than in the FYE 2024 and £11.0 billion more than the £137.3 billion forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) in March 2025.

Within public sector borrowing in the FYE 2025, the current budget deficit was £70.3 billion. This is £8.4 billion more than in FYE 2024. Public sector net investment increased by £8.8 billion to £78.0 billion for the same 12-month period.

Our Public sector finances borrowing by subsector: Appendix R dataset presents public sector borrowing in a matrix table format. It provides a summary by transaction for each of the subsectors. The time period presented in the matrix table can be changed using the drop-down box feature.

The public sector (excluding public sector banks) borrowed £148.3 billion in the FYE March 2025. Of this, central government borrowed £154.8 billion. This larger central government borrowing was partially offset by a £15.0 billion Bank of England (BoE) surplus and balanced by remaining subsectors.

In the FYE 2025, central government has made payments totalling £36.3 billion to the BoE under its Asset Purchase Facility (APF) Fund indemnity agreement. These intra-public sector transfers have no impact on overall public sector borrowing (PSNB ex). They increased central government’s borrowing by £36.3 billion in the FYE 2025 but reduced the borrowing impact of the BoE by an equal and offsetting amount.

Central government net borrowing

Central government net borrowing is the sum of its current budget deficit and its net (capital) investment spending.

The current budget, which is usually in deficit, can be considered as borrowing to fund day-to-day central government activities. This is the difference between its current receipts and current expenditure, while taking account of capital consumption (depreciation).

Tables 1 to 3 in our Public sector finances summary tables: Appendix M dataset provides an extended presentation of Table 1 and a summary of central government receipts and expenditure data.

Central government current receipts

Central government’s current receipts were £1,035.8 billion in the FYE 2025, £37.9 billion more than in the same period last year. Of this £37.9 billion increase in income:

• central government tax receipts increased by £41.1 billion to £790.3 billion; this included increases of £26.3 billion in Income Tax, £5.4 billion in Value Added Tax (VAT) and £3.2 billion in Corporation Tax receipts, £2.5 billion in business rates and £2.4 billion in stamp duty (on land and property)
• compulsory social contributions decreased by £6.9 billion to £173.8 billion, largely because of the reductions in the main rates of National Insurance in early 2024

A detailed breakdown of central government income is presented in our Public sector current receipts: Appendix D dataset.

Central government current expenditure

Central government’s current expenditure was provisionally estimated as £1,031.3 billion in the FYE 2025, £48.6 billion more than in the same 12-month period a year ago. Of this overall £48.6 billion increase in spending:

• central government departmental spending on goods and services increased by £28.3 billion to £434.6 billion, as pay rises and inflation increased running costs
• net social benefits paid by central government increased by £15.0 billion to £306.4 billion, largely caused by inflation-linked increases in many benefits
• payments to support the day-to-day running of local government increased by £10.2 billion to £145.3 billion; these intra-government transfers have no impact on overall public sector borrowing (PSNB ex)
• interest payable on central government debt increased by £2.3 billion to £85.3 billion, largely because the interest payable on index-linked gilts rises and falls with the Retail Prices Index (RPI)
• net current grants abroad decreased £4.4 billion to £9.7 billion, largely because of smaller net payments made to the EU
  
• subsidies paid by central government decreased by £3.2 billion to £29.0 billion, largely because of the closure of the energy support schemes that were active until June 2023

Central government net investment

Central government net investment in the FYE 2025 was £116.9 billion, £3.6 billion less than in the same period a year ago. This £116.9 billion includes £36.3 billion in regular payments from HM Treasury to the BoE APF Fund.

The £8.2 billion reduction in payments to the APF Fund were partially offset by a £3.9 billion increase in gross capital formation and other transactions. These included higher payments to the private sector including the £1.7 billion payment to Annington Homes in December 2024 for the repurchase of armed forces personnel housing.

Local government

Initial estimates suggest that local government borrowing was £11.0 billion in the FYE 2025. This was £0.6 billion less than in the same period a year earlier. Our provisional monthly estimates for the UK are currently based on published budget data for England, Scotland and Wales, with estimates included for Northern Ireland.

Provisional estimates show the public sector borrowed £148.3 billion in the financial year ending (FYE) March 2025. This was the third-highest borrowing in any financial year since records began in FYE 1947, behind the equivalent 12-month period of the FYE 2021 during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and the FYE 2010 following the global financial downturn. However, these estimates have not been adjusted for inflation.

Expressing borrowing as a ratio of gross domestic product (GDP) – the value of everything produced in the UK economy in a 12-month period – gives an estimate of its affordability and provides a more thorough and reliable measure for comparison of the UK’s fiscal position over time.

We currently estimate the total borrowed in the FYE March 2025 as a ratio of GDP was 5.1%, 0.3 percentage points higher than in the FYE 2024.

We describe the methodology used for the presentation of our GDP ratios in our The use of GDP in public sector fiscal ratio statistics methodology.

The public sector balance sheet describes its financial position at a point in time. It shows its liabilities (amounts owed) and its assets (amounts owned).

There are several measures of the public sector balance sheet that we discuss in our What the UK government owns and what it owes blog.

Table 3 presents the narrowest balance sheet measure, which is the redemption value of central government gilts. It then builds on this measure, widening coverage by both the subsector and the range of asset and liability types included, to reach the far wider measure of public sector net worth. We explain this measure in our Wider measures of the public sector balance sheet: public sector net worth methodology.

Our Public sector balance sheet tables: Appendix N dataset presents a detailed reconciliation between the balance sheet measures summarised in Table 3.

Public sector net debt

Public sector net debt excluding public sector banks (PSND ex) is the most widely used balance sheet measure used to describe the UK public sector’s financial position at a point in time. Expressing net debt as a ratio of gross domestic product (GDP) gives an estimate of its affordability and provides a more thorough and reliable measure for comparison of the UK’s fiscal position over time.

The net debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of April 2025 was provisionally estimated at 95.5%, 0.7 percentage points more than a year ago. However, this is a highly provisional estimate. It is likely to be revised in future publications because it partly relies on GDP estimates based on the April 2025 Office for Budget Responsibility forecast. Our How the ONS estimates UK debt to GDP figures blog explains why our estimates of the debt to GDP ratio are susceptible to revision.

Public sector net debt excluding the Bank of England (BoE) was £2,655.0 billion at the end of April 2025, or around 89.6% of GDP. This was £173.3 billion, or 5.9 percentage points of GDP, less than the wider measure of net debt (including the BoE). This difference was largely a result of the BoE’s quantitative easing activities, including the gilt-purchasing activities of the Asset Purchase Facility (APF) Fund.

The APF Fund’s gilt holding is not recorded directly as a component of public sector net debt. Instead, in April 2025, we recorded the £90.3 billion difference between the £619.7 billion of reserves created to purchase its gilts (at market value at the time of purchase) and their £529.4 billion redemption value. For details of the BoE’s contribution to public sector net debt, see Table PSA9A of our Public sector finances tables 1 to 10: Appendix A dataset.

Public sector net financial liabilities

Public sector net financial liabilities excluding public sector banks (PSNFL ex) were £2,472.1 billion at the end of April 2025. This was equivalent to an estimated 83.5% of GDP. This was £207.4 billion, or 3.3 percentage points, more than at the end of April 2024.

PSNFL ex adds further assets and liabilities to those recorded in debt (PSND ex). These extra assets are currently valued at more than the extra liabilities. This means that PSNFL ex was 12.0 percentage points of GDP less than PSND ex, which stood at 95.5% of GDP at the end of April 2025.

We explain the financial assets and liabilities captured in PSNFL ex in our Public sector net financial liabilities (PSNFL) methodology.

Additionally, we published a blog explaining the PSNFL measure, because it has been selected by the UK government as the reference for a balance sheet fiscal rule.

The additional financial assets and liabilities included in PSNFL ex that fall outside of the PSND ex boundary are not updated monthly. Instead, they are updated quarterly, or when data become available. These data were last updated on 21 March 2025.

A more detailed presentation of the public sector balance sheet is available in our Public sector net worth: Appendix O dataset, released on 21 March 2025.

The data for the latest months of every release contain a degree of forecasts. These are then replaced by improved estimates, as further data are made available, and finally by outturn data.

Tables 4 to 6 of our Public sector finances summary tables: Appendix M dataset compare our latest public sector finances data with those in our Public sector finances, UK: March 2025 bulletin, published on 23 April 2025. They highlight the revisions to borrowing by subsector, with additional detail for central government receipts and expenditure.

Our Public sector finance revisions analysis: Appendix P dataset records monthly borrowing data as at first and at subsequent publications, graphically illustrating any potential bias to our early estimates.

Revisions to public sector net borrowing in the financial year to March 2025

We have reduced our initial estimate of public sector net borrowing (PSNB ex) in the financial year ending (FYE) March 2025 by £3.7 billion to £148.3 billion since publishing our March 2025 release. This change was largely because of regular monthly updates to our central government data.

We have increased our previous estimate of central government receipts by £4.6 billion, while our estimate of total central government expenditure has increased by £0.9 billion.

Of this rise in receipts, we increased our previous estimate of tax receipts by £3.9 billion and compulsory social contributions (largely national insurance contributions) by £0.7 billion.

Additionally, we have reduced the surplus of public sector funded pensions subsector by £1.1 billion to £1.3 billion to incorporate the latest estimates.

Tables 5 to 6 of our Public sector finances summary tables: Appendix M dataset present the revisions to our previously published estimates of central government receipts and spending by component.

Revisions to public sector net debt at the end of March 2025

We have reduced our estimate of public sector net debt (PSND ex) at the end of March 2025 by £6.6 billion to £2,807.3 billion since publishing our March 2025 release. Of this change, £4.6 billion was because of regular monthly updates to our Bank of England data, which are reported one month in arrears.

The remaining £2.0 billion revision to debt was largely because of updated estimates for the public sector funded pensions subsector’s contribution to debt.

Revisions to public sector net debt as a percentage of GDP at the end of March 2025

On 15 May 2025, we published our GDP first quarterly estimate, UK: January to March 2025. This latest estimate of gross domestic product (GDP) was higher than previously recorded. It has subsequently reduced our previously published estimate of public sector net debt as a percentage of GDP at the end of March 2025 by 0.5 percentage points.

Combined with the previously explained £6.6 billion reduction to net debt, overall, public sector net debt as a ratio of GDP has reduced by 0.7 percentage points from 95.8% to 95.1% at the end of March 2025 compared with that reported in our March 2025 publication.

Public sector

In the UK, the public sector consists of six subsectors: central government, local government, public non-financial corporations, public sector funded pensions, the Bank of England (BoE) and public financial corporations (including public sector banks). The figures presented in this release exclude public sector banks unless otherwise noted.

The NatWest Group, the only remaining public sector bank, was reclassified to the private sector as of June 2024.

Public sector current budget deficit

Public sector current budget deficit (PSCBD) is the gap between current expenditure and current receipts on an accruals basis, having taken account of depreciation. PSCBD is effectively an estimate of borrowing to fund day-to-day public sector activities and is the reference statistic used for a UK government fiscal rule.

The current budget is in surplus when receipts are greater than expenditure and is indicated with a negative sign.

Public sector net borrowing

Public sector net borrowing (PSNB) is the gap between total expenditure and current receipts on an accruals basis. If receipts exceed expenditure, this is referred to as a surplus and is indicated with a negative sign. Borrowing is often referred to by commentators as “the deficit”.

Public sector current budget deficit and net borrowing are measured on an accruals basis, where transactions for income are recorded when earned and expenses are recorded when incurred, rather than when the bills are paid (on a cash basis).

Central government net cash requirement

The central government net cash requirement (CGNCR) represents the cash needed to be raised from the financial markets over a period to finance its activities. The amount of cash required will be affected by changes in the timing of payments to and from the public sector, rather than when these liabilities were incurred.

Public sector net debt

Public sector net debt (PSND), often referred to by commentators as “the national debt”, represents the amount of money the public sector owes to the private sector and overseas (in the form of loans, debt securities, deposit holdings and currency), net of liquid financial assets held.

Public sector net financial liabilities

Public sector net financial liabilities (PSNFL) is a wider measure of the balance sheet than public sector net debt and includes all financial assets and liabilities recognised in the national accounts. PSNFL is the reference statistic used for a UK government fiscal rule and is sometimes referred to as “net financial debt”.

Broadening the PSNFL measure to include the public sector’s non-financial assets provides public sector net worth (PSNW), our widest balance sheet measure.

Methodology guides

To supplement this release, we publish an accompanying Monthly statistics on the public sector finances: a methodological guide and Public sector finances QMI outlining the strengths, limitations, and appropriate uses of government finance statistics.

We also explain the recording of interest payable to holders of UK government gilts in the UK public sector finances in our Calculation of interest payable on government gilts methodology and our Use of gross domestic product (GDP) in public sector fiscal ratio statistics methodology.

Accredited official statistics

Public sector net borrowing, cash requirement and debt are accredited official statistics. These accredited official statistics were independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in June 2017. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality, and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be labelled “accredited official statistics”.

Official statistics

Public sector net financial liabilities and public sector net financial worth are both official statistics. These measures were introduced after June 2017, and so have not yet been reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation.

Official statistics in development

Public sector net worth is labelled as “official statistics in development”. Until October 2023, these were called “experimental statistics”. Read more about the change in our Guide to official statistics in development.

Central government tax receipts and social contributions

In the most recent months, tax receipts recorded on an accrued basis are subject to some uncertainty. This is because many taxes such as Value Added Tax (VAT), Corporation Tax, and Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Income Tax contain some forecast cash receipts data and are liable to revision when actual cash receipts data are received.

The forecasts underlying our current tax estimates largely reflect the expectations published in the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR’s) Economic and fiscal outlook – March 2025 report.

Support payments to Ukraine

On 1 March 2025, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a £2.26 billion aid package to Ukraine under the G7 Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) scheme.

On 14 April 2025, the UK made a second of three payments to Ukraine of £752 million under the ERA scheme. The first payment was made on 6 March 2025, with the final payment to follow in 2026.

Further information on these payments is available in our Economic statistics classifications and developments in public sector finances: April 2025 article.

Public corporations

Data for public corporations in the financial year ending (FYE) March 2026 are highly provisional initial estimates for the UK. They are largely based on the OBR’s Economic and fiscal outlook – March 2025 report

Data for public corporations in FYE 2024 and FYE 2025 remain largely based on the OBR’s Economic and fiscal outlook – October 2024 report, and are supplemented by in-year estimates for train operating companies, the Housing Revenue Account, and surveyed public corporations.

Local government

Local government data for the FYE 2026 are highly provisional initial estimates for the UK. They are largely based on the OBR’s Economic and fiscal outlook – March 2025 report.

Local government data for the FYE 2025 remain provisional estimates for the UK. They are largely based on published budget data for England, Scotland and Wales, with estimates included for Northern Ireland.

In recent years, planned local government expenditure initially reported in local authority budgets has been systematically lower than final outturn current expenditure reported in the audited accounts, and generally higher than that reported in final outturn capital expenditure. Therefore, we may include adjustments to increase or decrease the amounts reported at the budget stage.

For FYE 2024, we include a £0.5 billion downward adjustment to Scotland’s capital expenditure.

For FYE 2025, we include a £3.0 billion upward adjustment to England’s current expenditure.

To reflect the most recently available data for housing benefits, we have applied further downward adjustments to budget data for current expenditure on benefits of £0.2 billion in FYE 2024 and £1.4 billion in FYE 2025.

Comparing our data with official forecasts

The independent OBR is responsible for the production of official forecasts for the UK government. These forecasts are usually produced twice a year, in spring and autumn. The latest forecast was published in the OBR’s Economic and fiscal outlook – March 2025 report.