Jeremy Hunt’s scope for tax cuts hit by higher-than-expected borrowing

Jeremy Hunt will have been disappointed if he was expecting more scope for tax cuts, an analyst said. Photograph: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

Jeremy Hunt’s scope for a substantial pre-election tax giveaway has been hit after the latest set of official figures showed the UK’s public finances in worse shape than thought at last month’s budget.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed the government borrowed £120.7bn in the 2023-24 financial year – £6.6bn more than the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) had expected.