The Guardian view on government debt: sensible, not spendthrift | Editorial

The response to the pandemic must not lead to a renewal of austerity. Shrinking the state has contributed to this crisis

How much will this pandemic cost us? And how will we pay? The mounting cost of Britain's coronavirus response is astounding. The furlough scheme alone could cost an estimated 80bn; overall, the package will result in a deficit of nearly 300bn in the current financial year, up from 55bn in March's budget, the Office for Budget Responsibility forecast on Thursday.

Yet Britain looks entirely unremarkable in the global context; in fact, the Institute for Fiscal Studies says the response of other G7 nations has typically been larger. The International Monetary Fund expects average debt-to-GDP ratios to be above 120% in advanced economies next year, above the levels seen in the 2008/9 financial crisis, as support packages and plummeting tax income take their toll.