Rubbish Check
Daily Mail Money · 1 September 2026
source“‘Bond market turmoil gives UK a £6bn debt interest headache as borrowing costs jump to highest level since 1998’”
R4/ 10
Selective
Rubbish Rating — 1 = base fact, 10 = pure rubbish
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In short
Rubbish Talk rates the Daily Mail's claim that UK "borrowing costs jump to highest level since 1998" a 4/10 because the 1998 comparison is real but specific to long-dated gilts, while the headline's £6bn figure is one economist's 2029/30 projection presented as a current fact.
The Verdict
Selective. The underlying data is genuine and the Mail's own body text is careful with the numbers, but the headline compresses a forward-looking modelled estimate and a maturity-specific yield record into one blunt, present-tense "headache" claim that reads more dramatic than the nuance supports.
What actually happened
UK gilt yields have climbed through 2026 on inflation, heavy borrowing and political instability, with long-dated gilts trading near levels last seen in 1998. Panmure Liberum economist Simon French modelled that if current market-implied yields hold, higher borrowing costs could add roughly £6bn to debt interest by the 2029/30 fiscal year, based on a 70 basis-point gap between current 20-year gilt yields and the OBR's Spring Forecast assumption.
Key facts
- 30-year gilt yield: 5.87%, the highest since 1998, as market data shows yields around 5.78-5.89% through 2026.
- 10-year gilt yield: 5.15%, described in the article as only briefly surpassed three times since 1998; separate reporting shows 10-year yields hitting 5.21% on 1 September, the highest since 2008, not 1998.
- The £6bn figure is Simon French's estimate that a 70bp gap versus the OBR's Spring Forecast, "applied across the curve," would add £6bn to debt interest by 2029/30, a forward projection, not a current-year cost.
- Actual current interest spend: £109bn in 2025/26, equivalent to 3.6% of GDP and 8% of public spending, near a 50-year high, a harder, present-tense figure the headline skips past.
- July borrowing came in at £1.8bn versus an OBR-forecast £500m surplus, £2.3bn worse than expected.
What to watch for
Watch whether the £6bn figure survives contact with the actual October 28 Budget, since it rests on yields holding at current levels for years, not a locked-in cost. Also watch whether other outlets distinguish long-dated gilt records (1998) from the 10-year benchmark (2008) as clearly as the Mail's own body text does.
About this scoreThe R-Score is Rubbish Talk's editorial opinion on how far a headline's framing sits from what the underlying facts support. It is a judgement about presentation and emphasis, not an allegation that any outlet has acted dishonestly. Every figure we rely on is linked under Receipts so you can check it yourself.
