£45.9 Billion: HMRC’s Debt Skyrockets by March 2023

The UK’s Debt Mountain Just Got a Power‑Up

What the Chancellor Did

In the latest Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced a £163 million “capacity boost” for HMRC’s debt‑management team.
Why it matters? Because the “debt mountain” has been growing faster than a compost pile in the garden of government finances.

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The Numbers that make us shiver

FY	Total Debt	Tax Debt	Credit Debt	Year‑on‑Year Change
2023‑24	£45.9 billion	£43.9 billion	£2.1 billion	+£4.3 billion
2022‑23	£41.6 billion	—	—	—

Tax debt now accounts for 5.4 % of UK tax revenues.

Across the year, HMRC tried to smooth the pain with time‑to‑pay schemes that helped £5.7 billion of debt be sliced into manageable chunks.

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Andrew Park’s Take‑away

“A £163 m boost is a breath of fresh air for a debt mountain this big,” says Andrew Park, Partner in Tax at Price Bailey.“More hands on deck = quicker pick‑ups, fewer hawkers on the hill. That’s a massive win for the UK’s fiscal health.”

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How the Extra Cash Is Going to Work

Boosted workforce – more workers on the front lines.

New data goodies – HMRC will get fresh, tailored intel for tackling each business’s debt profile.

Digital transformation – part of a multi‑year move to eliminate unmatched payments – the quirky mess where money arrives with no reference or name.

“Business owners, keep your books tight and your cash flow tighter. The markets are about to start digging harder,” adds Park.

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