§ Mr. SalmondTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the estimated effect would be on UK net borrowing for the current year if the UK GDP grows at(a) 1.75 per cent., (b) 1.5 per cent. and (c) 1 per cent. rather than the projected rate. [59587]
§ Mr. BoatengParagraph C18 of Budget 2002 gives estimates of the relationship between net borrowing and the output gap.
§ Mr. SalmondTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the Treasury classes as a prudent and acceptable level of(a) deficit spending for the UK Government and (b) total national debt as a percentage of GDP. [59389]
§ Mr. BoatengThe Government set fiscal policy to meet their fiscal policy objectives and their two strict fiscal rules:
- the golden rule: that, over the economic cycle, the Government will borrow only to invest and not to fund current spending; and
- the sustainable investment rule: that public sector net debt as a proportion of GDP will be held, over the economic cycle, at a stable and prudent level, currently defined as below 40 per cent. of GDP.
Further detail showing the Government are projected to meet their fiscal rules over the next five years can be found in Table 2.5 on page 31 of the April 2002 Economic and Fiscal Strategy Report.
§ Mr. SalmondTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what UK net borrowing was in each year since 1992; and what the predicted UK net borrowing in each year from the current year to 2008 is. [59390]
§ Mr. BoatengThe available estimates of public sector net borrowing for the UK, expressed in financial years and as a percentage of GDP, are set out in Tables C23 and C2 of Budget 2002.