UK budget deficit 'to surpass Greece's as worst in EU'

[AtW]

The UK budget deficit will swell this year to overtake Greece, becoming the worst in the European Union, the European commission said today in a stark warning on the eve of the election.

The commission's spring economic forecasts put the UK deficit for this calendar year at 12% of GDP, the highest of all 27 EU nations and worse than the Treasury's own forecasts.

The country's budget shortfall was the third largest in the EU last year but will overtake both Greece and Ireland this year, according to the forecasts. Greece's measures to tackle its public finances problems are seen cutting the deficit there to 9.3% of GDP.

Worries about Britain's public finances – in their worst state since the end of the second world war – continue to unnerve financial markets and analysts are divided over whether a hung parliament will have the clout to rapidly reduce the deficit.

"The first thing for the new government to do is to agree on a convincing, ambitious programme of fiscal consolidation in order to start to reduce the very high deficit and stabilise the high debt level of the UK," said European economic and monetary affairs commissioner Olli Rehn.

More: UK budget deficit 'to surpass Greece's as worst in EU' | Business | guardian.co.uk

[sasguru]

The UK budget deficit will swell this year to overtake Greece, becoming the worst in the European Union, the European commission said today in a stark warning on the eve of the election.

The commission's spring economic forecasts put the UK deficit for this calendar year at 12% of GDP, the highest of all 27 EU nations and worse than the Treasury's own forecasts.

The country's budget shortfall was the third largest in the EU last year but will overtake both Greece and Ireland this year, according to the forecasts. Greece's measures to tackle its public finances problems are seen cutting the deficit there to 9.3% of GDP.

Worries about Britain's public finances – in their worst state since the end of the second world war – continue to unnerve financial markets and analysts are divided over whether a hung parliament will have the clout to rapidly reduce the deficit.

"The first thing for the new government to do is to agree on a convincing, ambitious programme of fiscal consolidation in order to start to reduce the very high deficit and stabilise the high debt level of the UK," said European economic and monetary affairs commissioner Olli Rehn.

More: UK budget deficit 'to surpass Greece's as worst in EU' | Business | guardian.co.uk

And in other news it was noted that the Pope is a catholic and bears take dumps in forested areas.

Not the sharpest tool, are you, AtW?

[AtW]

Not the sharpest tool, are you, AtW?

I am the hammer

[Doggy Styles]

I bet Germany and France wish we were in the Euro now!

[gingerjedi]

You're not comparing apples with apples, as a percentage ours is 68% and Greece is 115%.

We have a similar budget deficit but then we don't have an economy that relies on little more than olive oil exports, beach holidays and huge cash injections from our neighbours.

I'm not saying our economy is in great shape but we do have a tradition of fighting our way out of a corner.

[BlasterBates]

The UK will get to where Greece is sooner, because it is about 10 times the size of Greece, and there's no way the market will by bonds in 2 or 3 years time, coz the even the IMF would struggle to bail out the UK.

Make no mistake the UK does not have a lot of time to get it's debt down. If it gets to be a "Greece" the consequences would be pretty catastrophic.

[Sysman]

Make no mistake the UK does not have a lot of time to get it's debt down. If it gets to be a "Greece" the consequences would be pretty catastrophic.

In our lunchtime ponderings about the European economy I pointed out that the UK would be truly up tulip creek without the banking sector.

Something to think about post election when tax raises will be on the cards.

[TimberWolf]

It's all very well being sorry for Greece, but on a more positive note would Greece going belly-up be really great for the UK? Ditto for the Euro.