Public Debt Interest (Hansard, 18 May 1990)

§ Mr. Allen
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the interest paid on public debt in each of the last 10 financial years.

§ Mr. Ryder
Figures for gross debt interest payments of the public sector are given in the table for each of the last 10 financial years (1989–90 is an estimated outturn).

Public sector gross debt interest payments

Cash £ billion Percentage of money GDP

1980–81 12.0 5.1

1981–82 14.1 5.4

1982–83 14.7 5.2

1983–84 15.2 4.9

1984–85 16–8 5.1

1985–86 18.4 5.1

1986–87 18.2 4.7

1987–88 18.3 4.3

1988–89 18.6 3.9

1989–90 19.0 3.75

572W

§ Mr. Ryder
Debts owed to the United Kingdom by the east European countries fall into two categories: debt owed to the Government and debt owed to banks registered in the United Kingdom. It has not been the past practice of the Government to reveal specific debt owed by individual countries. Eastern Europe as a whole owes £1.7 billion to the United Kingdom Government. Eastern Europe's debt to United Kingdom banks is as follows:

Public sector gross debt interest payments
	Cash £ billion	Percentage of money GDP
1980–81	12.0	5.1
1981–82	14.1	5.4
1982–83	14.7	5.2
1983–84	15.2	4.9
1984–85	16–8	5.1
1985–86	18.4	5.1
1986–87	18.2	4.7
1987–88	18.3	4.3
1988–89	18.6	3.9
1989–90	19.0	3.75