‘RISING household debt is now emerging as one of the biggest worries for Scots as the latest data from Citizens Advice Scotland show that its average client owes £13,380 - a 64 per cent increase since 2001. More than one in five clients have debts of more than £20,000.

The data follows publication last week of figures from Datamonitor showing that the average Briton owes £4,004 - 10 per cent up on 2003 and 45 per cent higher than in 2000.

The issue is rising up the political agenda as pressure groups expose the extent of the crisis with politicians. Stephen Timms, the financial secretary to the Treasury, will be among those addressing the issue at a conference this week in Edinburgh.

The Datamonitor figures reveal that the average person owes about £1,302 on credit cards, £1,892 on unsecured personal loans and the remainder on overdrafts and motor and retail finance deals. Total borrowing by the UK population has soared to £1 trillion.’

Read more at Conference to tackle issue of soaring debt

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