Philip Hammond has been warned about “significant risks” to the UK’s finances by the National Audit Office NIKLAS HALLE'N/AFP/Getty ImagesPhilip Hammond will be warned today by the government’s official auditors that a 1 per cent rise in inflation caused by Brexit could push up the cost of borrowing by £26 billion. Sir Amyas Morse, head of the National Audit Office (NAO), said that the high levels of government borrowing since the financial crash meant that there were already “significant risks” to the UK’s finances. He added that these could be exacerbated by “unexpected developments”, including the nature of Britain’s departure from the EU. The NAO said that since 2009-10, borrowing had increased by 61 per cent while interest payments on the UK’s debts had cost the government £222 billion. It pointed to an increase in the use of index-linked gilts to finance the UK’s…

Source: The Times November 07, 2017 00:00 UTC