George Osborne misses borrowing target by £1.8bn

George Osborne has been dealt a blow in his efforts to shore up the nation's finances after official figures showed the Chancellor missed his borrowing targets for the year.

The Office for National Statistics said the budget deficit stood at £74 billion for the financial year ending in March.

The Office for Budget Responsibility had forecast borrowing to hit £72.2 billion for 2015/16, meaning the Chancellor overshot his borrowing target by £1.8 billion.