In January 2010, public sector net borrowing (PSNB) was £4.3bn which is £9.6bn higher than in 2009 when there was net lending of £5.3bn. The current budget surplus was £1.2bn, but it is a lower surplus than January 2009 when it was £10.2bn. Public sector net investment was £5.5bn. Central government borrowing was £2.96bn and local government was £1.96bn, public corporations reported a negative borrowing figure of £591bn giving the £4.3bn PSNB figure. The public sector net cash requirement was -£11.770bn compared to the -£24.853bn net cash requirement of January 2009. Public sector net debt was £848.5bn, equivalent to 59.9% of GDP compared to 50% GDP last year and 61.4% last month.
The financial interventions made by the government affected public sector net debt and public sector net borrowing because public sector banks, the special liquidity scheme and the asset purchase facility transactions with the financial sector were excluded from the PSNB statistics. There were a number of public sector bank transactions with the government, equity and capital injections and depositor compensations included in PSNB.
The central government account shows total current receipts were £50.5bn, total current expenditure was £49.5bn and depreciation was -£0.6bn giving a current budget £0.4bn. Taxes on income and wealth made the largest contribution to central government receipts with £19.45bn followed by taxes on production with £13.6bn and compulsory social contributions with £8bn. The largest contributors to central government current expenditure were net social benefits with £13.99bn and 'others' with £31.23bn according to the ONS statistical bulletin on public sector finances.
