The Office for Budget Responsibility has revised up government borrowing forecasts for 2014 and 2015 – but figures for the following years are lower than previously estimated, according to Chancellor George Osborne.

Giving his Autumn Statement, Osborne said public sector net borrowing is now forecast to stand at £91.3bn this year, down from £97.5bn last year and above the £86.4bn forecast in March’s Budget.

The figures, while showing an initial deterioration in borrowing, make for better reading than some had hoped in later years, according to the independent forecaster.

Estimates for 2015 borrowing have also been revised up, from £69bn to £75.9bn, but figures for 2016 and beyond are lower than expected.

Borrowing will fall to £40.9bn by 2016, £14.5bn by 2017 and then rise to a surplus of £4bn in 2018-19, Osborne said, citing OBR forecasts.

“We end in a marginally stronger position than expected in the Budget. By 2019-20 Britain is now expected to have a surplus of £23bn,” said the Chancellor.

Meanwhile the 2014 growth rate was revised up from an estimated 2.7 per cent in March to a current forecast of 3 per cent, as expected.

Growth forecasts for future years, however, were lower than expected, and 2016-18 annual figures were revised down.

“The warning lights are flashing over the global economy,” Osborne said, pinning the blame on the OBR revising down global growth forecasts.

In the UK, the OBR now expects growth to come in at 2.4 per cent next year, up from a March prediction of 2.3 per cent. But the GDP forecast was revised down from a 2.6 per cent forecast to 2.2 per cent for 2016, down from 2.6 per cent to 2.4 per cent in 2017, and down from 2.5 per cent to 2.3 per cent in 2018.

Courtesy of Professional Adviser