UK will be paying for Covid for decades, say MPs
UK government debt is now over £2.2 trillion, or about 99.7% of GDP - a rate not seen since the early 1960s
Taxpayers will bear the costs of Covid "for decades" - and an inquiry will not come soon enough to learn lessons from the pandemic, MPs have said.
In two new reports, the Public Accounts Committee said the UK government's response to the crisis has exposed UK taxpayers to "significant financial risks", reports the BBC.
The MPs also attacked government spending on unusable protective kit.
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UK's Department of Health said there were "processes" to ensure spending gives taxpayers value for money.
In the cross-party reports published on Sunday, the PAC said the taxpayer would be exposed to "significant financial risks for decades to come" with the estimated cost of the government's measures having already hit £372bn in May.
UK government debt is now over £2.2 trillion, or about 99.7% of GDP - a rate not seen since the early 1960s. In June alone, debt interest cost £8.7bn.
In one example of future Covid costs, the PAC says taxpayers could be liable for an estimated £26 billion of bad loans, out of a total £92 billion of loans guaranteed by the government.
The report states: "While we acknowledge that there was a need to relax the usual rules surrounding major spending decisions... we are concerned that this has created serious risks that may require managing for years."
PAC chairwoman Dame Meg Hillier said: "With eye-watering sums of money spent on Covid measures so far, the government needs to be clear, now, how this will be managed going forward, and over what period of time."
