"Dave Plowman" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Neil Jones wrote:
According to the DMO:-

Year Total (£mn)
1996 262 261
1997 290 259
1998 297 366
1999 291 788
2000 290 631
2001 281 720
2002 278 720
2003 292 709

1996 is the last full year of Major's government. 1997 is
half-and-half,
so no conculsions can be drawn about that year.

So, while you are correct to say that the Major years left a lot of
debt
behind, Brown has only added to it.

Err, by the figures you've given, the trend in the last two years of
Tory
rule was up - as earlier figures would prove, and down under Brown,
with
the exception of '03. The '03 figure may have been influenced by the
Iraq
fiasco.


OK, "nothing but add" is wrong and I take it back. Perhaps I should have
said something along the lines of we now oew more than when Labor got
in.

These figures don't really tell much of a story, though. 1996 will be
affected by the "sale" of the railways. 2000 onwards by the 3G auction.
However, IMM chose the statistic.