John
McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, responding to the ONS public sector
finance figures today, which show the national debt having risen to £1.7
trillion
at
the end of December 2016, said:
“After
six wasted years of Tory failure on the economy it seems that under Philip
Hammond it is only going to get worse.
"It
appears 2016 was yet another bad year for the national debt with the Tories
adding an increase of £91.5 billion, or an average of £251 million each
day over the last year: the equivalent of £1,400 per head in the last 12
months.
"Under
Hammond’s new fiscal rules, presented in the House today, there is insufficient scope for investment in our economy,
which will hinder growth and therefore our ability to reduce the national debt.
"Only
Labour has a real investment plan underpinned by our Fiscal Credibility Rule to
tackle the national debt and to deal with the public finances, so we can
transform and rebuild Britain in order that no one and no community is left
behind.”
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