Britain can’t keep pushing its borrowing limits

Rishi Sunak tends to avoid taking aim at his predecessor. But in last night’s BBC Question Time election special, as he was quizzed by the audience about the Conservative party’s record, he delivered a surprisingly punchy answer. When asked about the Tory party’s record, he talked about how he stood up to Liz Truss’s borrow-and-spend plans during the leadership election in 2022. ‘I was right’, he replied simply, before adding: ‘What Keir Starmer is promising you is the same fantasy that Liz Truss did.’ It gained him his only applause of the evening.

Last night’s audience was acutely aware of the fiscal pressure the UK is under. It wasn’t just Sunak, but all the leaders, who were being asked questions about where they would find the money to fund their manifestos – what trade-offs they might make. ‘Borrowing’ has become an increasingly dirty word – one that sparks concern rather than excitement for some magical solution.