The British government borrowed £35.9bn in August, latest data from the Office for National Statistics shows.
The figure marks a record high for August, and is the third highest monthly borrowing on record.
Borrowing for the first five months of the financial year has now surpassed the entire annual total in 2008 at the peak of the financial crisis.
A slight revision downwards in figures previously announced for July was not enough to stop a record figure of £173.7bn being reported so far this year.
Net debt in the public sector has reached 101.9 per cent of GDP, hitting £2.02trn in August.
According to Reuters, this is the greatest proportion we have seen for 60 years, and anticipated borrowing of £372bn, or 18.9 per cent of GDP, will put us on par with World War Two debt levels.
While the numbers look steep, a number of commentators are noting that record-low interest rates are still giving governments headroom to borrow significantly cheaper than in previous years.
Quilter Investors portfolio manager Paul Craig says: “Obviously there is a long way to go in this crisis and much more still to be accounted and borrowed for, but with negative rates remaining an option on the table for the Bank of England the government should remain comfortable about where the level of debt is at.
“Nevertheless, the borrowing figures remain a stark reminder of exactly what we face when it comes to recovering from this pandemic.”
