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RECORD UK BANKRUPTCIES PREDICTION BORNE OUT
Jubilee Research at nef's pre-Christmas prediction of record levels of consumer debt after the Christmas spending binge has unfortunately been proven true. In particular Jubilee predicted that increasing levels of debt could push as many as 11,000 Britons over the brink into insolvency. According to the latest data released by the Department of Trade and Industry on Thursday, 5th February 2004, personal bankruptcies reached record levels during the last quarter, rising to almost 11,000.
Ann Pettifor, Director of Jubilee Research at nef said: "Personal bankruptcies in Britain are hitting record levels, right now - during the 'good times' - when confidence and growth in the economy is strong - and before any downturn. As we argued at the launch of our annual review of the global economy (Real World Economic Outlook) the economy is booming - at the expense of gullible, naïve consumers who are borrowing to keep up consumption. Evidence of how well businesses are doing out of this spending, can be found in the fall of business bankruptcies over the same period."
In a briefing published in December, and, using conservative assumptions based on rising levels of consumer debt, credit card borrowing and mortgage lending, nef predicted that personal bankruptcies will soar to a new high of almost 11,000 in the first quarter of 2004 - up 30 per cent since 2000.
The figures published last Thursday by the department of Trade and Industry show that there were 10,271 individual insolvencies in the final three months of last year.
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