Brussels divorce bill could SOAR beyond £39billion pledged by Theresa May
Treasury insiders fear that the disputed Brussels divorce bill may increase above the £39 billion promised by the Prime Minister
THE controversial Brussels divorce bill could yet soar beyond the £39 billion promised by Theresa May, Treasury insiders fear.
Watchdog the Office of Budget Responsibility say fluctuations in exchange rates mean £700,000 has already been added to the bill in just 6 months.
Under a draft agreement with Brussels, Britain has vowed to honour liabilities including pensions contributions for years to come - with the UK Government saying that would be between £35 and £39 billion.
In March the OBR said they believed the bill come in at £37.1 billion - but at Monday’s Budget they upped that figure £38.7 billion.
They say that market movements between the Pound and the Euro combined with slower than expected spending by the EU has forced our exit liabilities up.
And refreshed figures released in the Budget show the UK will still be paying £10.8 billion into EU coffers in 2022 — the year of the next scheduled election.
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And we will continue to feed more than £4 billion into the EU Budget in 2024.
The Treasury admitted that the bill had gone up, but they insisted that it was still within their predicted range of £35-39 billion, by a whisker.
However one insider warned it could rise even further without a dramatic strengthening of the value of a Pound before a final deal being signed and in subsequent years when the UK is still paying pension costs.
But despite the OBR warning, asked if the bill could go beyond the £39 billion figure, a Downing Street spokesman insisted: “I have not seen anything to that affect.”
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