After a record tax take and surplus in January, normal service has resumed. Britain experienced its second-largest February borrowing splurge since records began, according to figures just released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Last month we borrowed some £14.3 billion, which was £2.2 billion more than last February and the second highest since records began in 1991. Tom Davies, senior statistician at the ONS, said: ‘While [tax] receipts were up last year, that was outweighed by a rise in spending.’

A large part of that jump in spending was our debt interest payments which, at £13 billion, was the highest ever recorded........

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