Britain’s 30-year gilt yield hit 6% for the first time in 28 years amid a global bond sell-off linked to oil prices and inflation fears, adding pressure on Prime Minister Andy Burnham
Andy Burnham’s time as Prime Minister has just hit a weird new low . . . thanks to Liz Truss. Labour is battling a ferocious economic tempest as Government borrowing costs have rocketed beyond 6%, hitting levels that exceed those witnessed during Liz Truss’s notorious mini-Budget.
In a devastating setback for Prime Minister Andy Burnham, long-term gilt yields crossed the 6% threshold on Thursday as a worldwide bond sell-off battered debt markets. And the former short-lived Conservative Prime Minister Liz “wet lettuce” Truss was swift to twist the dagger, revelling on social media as borrowing costs under Labour overtook the highs recorded during her chaotic 2022 spell in office.
Posting on X, Truss delivered a pointed jab at Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey with a clear wordplay, questioning: “Gilt yields hit 6%. Will the Bank of England Bailey the Government out again?”
In what appeared to reference a financial “bailout,” her pun targeted Mr Bailey after his choice to unleash an emergency bond-purchasing programme to calm markets during her own short-lived leadership in 2022.
Critics are now charging the Governor with applying double standards, alleging he was swift to step in previously while playing down elevated borrowing costs under Labour.
The market turmoil exploded following data from the London Stock Exchange Group revealing Britain’s 30-year bond yield struck 6% for the first time in 28 years. Experts highlighted climbing oil prices – with Brent crude trading close to $100 (£75.80) per barrel amid Middle East tensions – which have fuelled worldwide inflation concerns and pushed bond prices downwards.
Opposition critics and political opponents were quick to seize on the figures to argue that Labour has lost grip of the country’s finances, reports the Express.
Responding to The Times report, one widely circulated post on X stated: “Labour has crashed the economy. Borrowing costs are way above what they were under Liz Truss and they’re getting worse by the hour.”
Climbing gilt yields mean the Government must pay considerably higher interest to secure money on international markets. Experts have cautioned that this will consume billions of pounds in taxpayer funds, putting pressure on public service budgets and jeopardising Mr Burnham’s major spending commitments.
The spike arrives just one day after the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee warned that the global economic picture has worsened since July. The central bank stressed that stubbornly elevated yields will tighten mortgage and lending conditions for families and firms, boost market instability and drastically limit the Treasury’s capacity to tackle future economic crises.