Labour's Debt Explosion

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2009

Labour's Debt Explosion

When the unelected idiot Brown took over in 2007, the UK's official government debt stood at 47% of GDP. By the end of 2011 it will be 94%, a literal doubling over just four years. Under his incompetent management, the UK will have clocked up the biggest increase in debt of any major OECD economy.

So says the OECD itself in its latest World Economic Outlook (see here Annex Table 32). 

But remember: the OECD's debt measure excludes most of our off-balance sheet Enron debt, like PFI and public sector pensions, which roughly double the final total. And it also excludes the trillions in guarantees given to our busted banks, whose most toxic chickens have still not finally come home to roost.

Labour always always burns our money - we know that. But even in Labour terms, Brown is the idot's idiot. Not only will he be leaving us our worst peacetime debt burden ever, he's also given his name to the famous Brown Bottom in the gold market - the time he flogged off our gold reserves when the market was at its lowest level for two decades (see this blog).

We don't know exactly what price he got for our 400 tons, but the market price at the time was below $300. And since the price is now over $1100, Tyler's fag packet says Brown's arrogance and stupidity lost us well in excess of £6bn. 

Although admittedly, measured against what he's now done to us, £6bn pales into insignificance.