There were 5.84 million working age benefit claimants at May 2009. This is an increase of 694,000 in the year.
UK base rate fell to a 315 year low when the official bank rate was reduced to 0.5% on 5
th
March 2009.
There were 4,716 compulsory liquidations and creditors’ voluntary liquidations in total in England and Wales in the third
quarter of 2009 (on a seasonally adjusted basis). This was an increase of 14.6% on the same period a year ago. In the
twelve months ending Q3 2009, approximately 1 in 114 active companies (or 0.9%) went into liquidation.
Additionally, there were 1,578 other corporate insolvencies in the third quarter of 2009 (not seasonally adjusted)
comprising 410 receiverships, 974 administrations and 194 company voluntary arrangements. In total these
represented an increase of 9.3% on the same period a year ago.
In December 2009 the public sector net debt (PSND) increased to £870.0bn, equivalent to 61.7% of gross domestic
product and equivalent to ~ £34,524 per household. PSND has increased £136bn in 12 months (equivalent to a
growth of £4,316 per second or £5,401 per household). Net borrowing for the month was £15.7bn. The interest
paid on this debt by the Government in April to December was £20.6bn which is equivalent to ~ £1,090 per household
/ annum.
According to the UK 2009 Pre Budget report the public sector net debt (PSND), including unrealised losses from
financial sector interventions, increases over the period to 2014-15 to £1,473bn (£58,920 per household).
The number of unemployed people in the three months to November 2009 was 2.46 million (7.8%), down 7,000
from the previous three months and up 511,000 (1,400 a day) over the year. 182,000 people (1,995 a day) reported
they had become redundant in the three months down 31,000 from the previous three months and down 46,000 from
a year earlier.
There is a gap of 850,000 between the number of people who are currently unemployed and the number of people
claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance benefit (1.61m).
In the year to December, the consumer prices index (CPI) rose by 2.9 per cent, up from 1.9 per cent in November. In
the year to December RPI rose by 2.4 per cent, up from 0.3 per cent in November - the largest monthly rise in the
annual rate of RPI inflation since 1979.
New car registrations in December were up 38.9% to 150,936 units. Full year registrations were down 6.4% to
1,994,999 units, the lowest level since 1995. Scrappage accounted for 20.8% of all new car registrations in December.
UK retail sales values rose 4.8% on a like-for-like basis and rose 6.0% on a total basis, from December 2008.
The Policy Exchange says most people are aware that Britain has a huge national debt which is growing during the
current fiscal crisis. But what many people do not know is that we have a second national debt – one that is kept out
of government figures and hidden from view. This is the public sector pension debt, which has grown as successive
governments have continued to promise public sector workers defined benefit pensions, often worth two thirds of final
salary, index-linked for life. It is now equivalent to 78% of GDP (£1.1trillion) with the cost of servicing the debt each
year to pay for these unfunded schemes now at £45.2 billion.
Servicing Debt: Research from Post Office Christmas Club has revealed that for more than 14m people (29%) the
cost of Christmas shopping, entertaining and socialising has resulted in increased stress over finances. Worryingly, of
the almost 5m people who had to increase their debts to cover Christmas, over a third (37%) are going to have to make
cut backs on essentials such as food and utility bills in order to repay debts.
Scottish Widows estimates that 11.3m UK households (44%) are dependent on more than one salary to cover bills. Of
the 6.6m UK households with dependent children, 4m are reliant on two or more salaries (60%).
CCCS expects more people to come to it for help over the next year as calls to its free debt helpline have risen
throughout 2009. The debt charity said that expected public sector redundancies in addition to the growth in private
sector cutbacks will be some of the causes of people being unable to repay their debts in 2010. Calls to the free CCCS
debt helpline went up by 25 percent in 2009, with the helpline receiving 86,573 calls in the fourth quarter compared to
69,431 for the first quarter. This increase reflects a longer trend which saw calls go up by over 68,000 from 2008 to
2009, with the helpline receiving 267,180 calls in 2008 and 335,323 in 2009.
Ofgem's quarterly social obligations report highlights a 13% increase in the number of electricity customers entering
into new debt repayment arrangements and a 21% increase in those making similar arrangements for gas in Q3
compared with Q2 2009. Average level of debt is 20% higher year on year (Q3 2009 compared with Q3 2008).
The ONS Wealth and Assets Survey estimated that one in ten of all households (2.5m) were in arrears on at least one
credit commitment in 2006/2008. This increased to 13% among households with any borrowing commitments, that is, a