UK government borrowing fell in April as Covid lockdown eased

National debt pile still climbs to 2.17tn or about 98.5% of GDP, the highest ratio since March 1962

Britain's stronger than expected recovery during the third lockdown limited government borrowing in April to just less than 32bn, an improvement of 16bn on the record high set a year earlier.

As parts of the economy reopened and businesses adapted to Covid restrictions, tax receipts improved from a year earlier and government spending on the furlough scheme fell, said the Office for National Statistics (ONS).