Britain’s national debt has smashed through the £1 trillion mark for the first time, placing the country in the same rank as Italy.
The figure, equal to £16,400 for every person in the UK, emerged as data due out today were widely expected to show that Britain’s economy shrank during the final three months of 2011.
The UK is now one of a small number of countries measuring its debt in trillions rather than billions, including Italy, the US and Japan.
Sir Mervyn King, the Governor of the Bank of England, said that 2012 would not be an easy year for households and businesses, with “dark clouds hanging over the world economy”.
The International Monetary Fund cut its forecast for global growth from 4 per…