Politics.co.uk: British drowning in Personal Debt - Brown urged to address personal debt
British drowning in Personal Debt - Brown urged to address personal debt
"The Liberal Democrats have increased the pressure on the government to address rising levels of personal debt. The renewed focus on personal borrowing came as the Bank of England raised the base rate to 5.75 per cent. This represents the fifth interest rate hike of the past year and brings the cost of borrowing to its highest level for six years.
A BBC report note that the amount of money owed by consumers has broken through the symbolic EUR 1.4 trillion barrier for the first time. The Bank of England (BoE) has said that consumers owe more than 1,479.42 bn EUR on cards, mortgages and loans. According to the BoE, about 80% of UK personal debt is in the form of loans secured against homes, such as mortgages and re-mortgages. Debt charities are warning consumers to think hard about how to manage their debts as interest rates rise. After taking on an extra EUR 16.6162 bn of debt during June, consumers now owe EUR 1.48562 trillion. According to the British National Consumer Council, about six million families are already struggling to keep up with credit commitments at a time when borrowing is rising."
