How much does the UK government borrow?

Public sector net borrowing excluding banks (ONS series J5II) was £134.3 billion in financial year 2025-26. The current budget deficit is a different series.

Same borrowing series, different periods. The rows are not added together.
PeriodCodeFigure
2025-26J5II£134.3 billion
April to August 2026J5II£77.3 billion
August 2026J5II£18.3 billion

Related

Provenance

Source
ONS Public Sector Finances, Appendix M
Dataset
Series J5II, public sector net borrowing excluding public sector banks
Published
22 September 2026
Coverage
Financial year 2025-26. Year-to-date and August 2026 are the same series on the bulletin, not extra borrowing on top.
Last updated
24 September 2026 (2026-09-24T08:05:00Z)
Not combined with incompatible series
Not the current budget deficit. Not TES. Not TME. Not HMRC cash.