George Osborne announces £8bn drop in borrowing

In his Autumn Statement on 25 November, Osborne (pictured) committed to spending £8bn less than forecast and spending £12bn more on capital expenditure, allowing faster progress in building the infrastructure the country needs. He revealed that, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility, borrowing will be £73.5bn this year, down from £74.1bn initially expected. This would fall to £49.9bn in 2016/2017, reaching a surplus of £10.1bn in 2019/2020. The Chancellor said it is time to "rebuild Britain" and "fix the roof while the sun in shining", bringing Britain "out of the red and ...