Borrowing in the financial year to January was £118.2 billion, a figure £11.6 billion higher than at the same point in the last financial year and the fourth-highest financial year-to-January borrowing since monthly records began in 1993.
Combined self-assessed income and Capital Gains Tax receipts were estimated at £36.2 billion, £3.8 billion more than a year earlier and the highest January receipts since monthly records began in 1999.
The public finances today recorded a £15.4 billion surplus, up £800 million on last year and the highest January figure since monthly records began in 1993.
Overall sales volumes still fell by 0.6% in the three months to January, compared with the three months to October.
Retail sales volumes staged a bigger-than-expected rebound in January, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed today.
