Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Government Debt Interest Payments

Tuesday 9 September 2025 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Interest on UK government debt is expected to total 111 billion this year.
  • The Chancellor attributes economic stability to their Government's actions, including five cuts in interest rates.
  • The Chancellor challenges a comparison with Greece, stating the UK's interest rate spread over the central bank rate is lower than Greece's.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Rebecca Paul Con Reigate
Economy Taxation
Context

Interest on government debt this year is expected to total £111 billion, which accounts for 8.3% of total public spending.

Question

I thank the Chancellor for that response. This year, interest on debt is expected to total £111 billion, which is 8.3% of total public spending. What are the Chancellor’s plans to rebuild confidence in the gilt market, and how confident is she that we will not be reliving the worst bits of the 1970s?

Answer from The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Rachel Reeves)

The best way to make sure that we continue to have confidence in the gilt markets is to keep the Tories and Liz Truss as far away from running the economy as possible. We have brought stability back to the economy, and there have been five cuts in interest rates. This is in sharp contrast to the disaster of Liz Truss and the clown show that we witnessed at the Reform conference at the weekend. Those two parties would lose control of spending, and push up mortgage costs and inflation. They have done it before, and they would do it all over again.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Chancellor did not provide specific plans to rebuild confidence in the gilt market or a clear assurance that the situation will not deteriorate like in the 1970s.

How: Keep Tories And Liz Truss Away From Running The Economy, Brought Stability Back With Five Cuts In Interest Rates

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Q2 Desmond Swayne Con New Forest West
Economy
Context

The UK is currently being charged more in interest than Greece.

Question

So why does the Chancellor think that the United Kingdom is being charged more in interest even than Greece?

Answer from The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Rachel Reeves)

The spread on our gilts over the central bank rate is lower in the UK than it is in Greece, so maybe the right hon. Gentleman should look again at his evidence. The truth is that we have had five cuts in interest rates since this Government came to office. We are paying high levels of interest on the debt, but the debt was accrued by the Conservative party, which destroyed our economy and public services all at once. We are fixing the mess that the Conservatives left.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Chancellor did not directly address why UK is being charged more in interest than Greece, instead stating that the spread on gilts over central bank rate is lower and emphasizing past mistakes of the Conservative party.

How: Spread On Our Gilts Over The Central Bank Rate Is Lower, Fixing Mess Left By Conservatives

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