Back to basics: The taxation of gilts

Ian Carnochan

Government debt is more important now than ever. Ian Carnochan provides background to UK government gilts and explains their tax treatment

Public debt is headline news.

From crises in the Eurozone to austerity measures at home the political and economic impact of government borrowing is hard to understate.

This article cannot hope to address let alone solve such issues.

Instead the focus is on one of the main ways the UK government borrows money through the issue of gilt-edged securities (gilts) and sets out the principal tax issues relating to such instruments.

What are gilts?

Gilts are sterling-denominated bonds issued by HM Treasury and listed on the London Stock Exchange.

There are two main types of gilts...

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Government debt is more important now than ever. Ian Carnochan provides background to UK government gilts and explains their tax treatment

Public debt is headline news.

From crises in the Eurozone to austerity measures at home the political and economic impact of government borrowing is hard to understate.

This article cannot hope to address let alone solve such issues.

Instead the focus is on one of the main ways the UK government borrows money through the issue of gilt-edged securities (gilts) and sets out the principal tax issues relating to such instruments.