John McDonnell has said the UK is in the grip of a personal debt crisis with levels of unsecured borrowing predicted to hit a record of £19,000 per household by the end of this parliament. The shadow chancellor said the increase in debt, to more than £14,000 per household this year, was alarming. Analysis from Labour shows unsecured debt is on course to exceed £15,000 per household next year and could go on to exceed £19,000 per household by 2022 if it follows the current trajectory. McDonnell said: “The alarming increase in average household debt already means many families in our country are struggling over the Christmas period. The total amount of unsecured debt was £392.8bn in the third quarter of this year, and Labour’s projection is based on OBR figures for unsecured loans from the economic and fiscal outlook published in November.

Source: The Guardian December 27, 2017 15:09 UTC