Government debt by instrument coverage — Debt securities and loans in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Government debt by instrument coverage — Debt securities and loans was 93.69 Percentage of GDP in 2026. ▲ Rising
Government debt by instrument coverage — Debt securities and loans in United Kingdom, 1995–2026
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans in United Kingdom is 93.69 Percentage of GDP, measured in 2026.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 14.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans in United Kingdom peaked at 101.86 Percentage of GDP in 2021 and was at its lowest, 28.79 Percentage of GDP, in 2002.
United Kingdom ranks 9th of 25 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Government debt by instrument coverage — Debt securities and loans in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Percentage of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 36.96 Percentage of GDP | — |
| 1996 | 36.71 Percentage of GDP | -0.7% |
| 1997 | 36.32 Percentage of GDP | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 34.71 Percentage of GDP | -4.4% |
| 1999 | 33.74 Percentage of GDP | -2.8% |
| 2000 | 32.1 Percentage of GDP | -4.9% |
| 2001 | 29.64 Percentage of GDP | -7.7% |
| 2002 | 28.79 Percentage of GDP | -2.9% |
| 2003 | 29.56 Percentage of GDP | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 31.54 Percentage of GDP | +6.7% |
| 2005 | 34.34 Percentage of GDP | +8.9% |
| 2006 | 35.86 Percentage of GDP | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 36.92 Percentage of GDP | +3.0% |
| 2008 | 37.43 Percentage of GDP | +1.4% |
| 2009 | 46.84 Percentage of GDP | +25.2% |
| 2010 | 64.53 Percentage of GDP | +37.8% |
| 2011 | 70.85 Percentage of GDP | +9.8% |
| 2012 | 76.63 Percentage of GDP | +8.2% |
| 2013 | 79.47 Percentage of GDP | +3.7% |
| 2014 | 81.74 Percentage of GDP | +2.9% |
| 2015 | 81.43 Percentage of GDP | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 82.01 Percentage of GDP | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 81.61 Percentage of GDP | -0.5% |
| 2018 | 80.39 Percentage of GDP | -1.5% |
| 2019 | 79.88 Percentage of GDP | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 79.49 Percentage of GDP | -0.5% |
| 2021 | 101.86 Percentage of GDP | +28.2% |
| 2022 | 94.43 Percentage of GDP | -7.3% |
| 2023 | 91.13 Percentage of GDP | -3.5% |
| 2024 | 91.61 Percentage of GDP | +0.5% |
| 2025 | 92.85 Percentage of GDP | +1.4% |
| 2026 | 93.69 Percentage of GDP | +0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 35.69 Percentage of GDP | 33.74 Percentage of GDP | 36.96 Percentage of GDP | 5 |
| 2000s | 34.3 Percentage of GDP | 28.79 Percentage of GDP | 46.84 Percentage of GDP | 10 |
| 2010s | 77.85 Percentage of GDP | 64.53 Percentage of GDP | 82.01 Percentage of GDP | 10 |
| 2020s | 92.15 Percentage of GDP | 79.49 Percentage of GDP | 101.86 Percentage of GDP | 7 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
- 6 Belgium 108.88 Percentage of GDP compare
- 6 Estonia 25.11 Percentage of GDP compare
- 7 Türkiye 24.2 Percentage of GDP compare
- 7 Spain 101.29 Percentage of GDP compare
- 8 Canada 95.08 Percentage of GDP compare
- 10 Finland 89.44 Percentage of GDP compare
- 11 Austria 82.93 Percentage of GDP compare
- 12 Hungary 76.93 Percentage of GDP compare
More economy & growth data for United Kingdom
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.14 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.42 Percent per annum (2029)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 0.3685 % change on previous year (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 0.1364 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 7,858 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant LCU), annual 0.3684 % change on previous year (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant LCU), per 0.0941 constant LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant LCU), per 5,422 constant LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 9.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.731 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans in United Kingdom?
- Government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans in United Kingdom was 93.69 Percentage of GDP in 2026, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 101.86 Percentage of GDP in 2021.
- What is the lowest government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 28.79 Percentage of GDP in 2002.
- How does United Kingdom rank for government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans?
- United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 25 countries with data for 2026.
- Is government debt by instrument coverage — debt securities and loans rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Government debt by instrument coverage — Debt securities and loans. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The magnitude of government debt and debt-to-GDP ratios varies depending on which measure of debt is used. To promote international comparability, the IMF, the OECD and the World Bank have agreed on a set of standard debt measures, which are defined in the Public Sector Debt Statistics Guide for Compilers and Users and the Government Finance Statistics Manual 2014. Government gross debt is shown in four categories: D1 to D4. D1 is the narrowest measure, comprising only two financial instruments: debt securities and loans. D4 (‘total gross debt’) is the broadest measure and includes debt securities, loans, Special Drawing Rights, currency and deposits, other accounts payable and insurance, pensions and standardised guarantees. The D1 to D3 measures are comparable between OECD countries. D4 is the preferred measure of debt in the international accounting standards (System of National Accounts or SNA) but cross-country comparability is more difficult for D4 because countries have different approaches to recording unfunded pension liabilities for government employees. For more information, please see the document: Measuring Government Debt: D1-D4