Britain's national debt is heading for £3 trillion. Servicing it costs roughly the annual wages of four million full-time workers. And a former chief economist of the IMF is now putting the odds of a major debt crisis before 2030 at better than fifty-fifty.

Independent economist Damian Pudner argues that the Government is running out of options quicker than many believe. Rachel Reeves can continue hoping for growth, or raise taxes or spend less. She and her colleagues aren't doing much more than talk about the first, they're running out of room on the second, and they will not discuss the third. That, Pudner concludes, is how you end up with the IMF knocking on the door.

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