Record number of bankruptcies
By politics.co.uk staff
Personal bankruptcies are now at their highest levels since records began in 1960, official figures show.
They have risen a massive 23.4 per cent since last year, now standing at 19,062 in the first quarter of 2009.
The figures, from the Insolvency Service, also show 10,713 individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) occurred in England and Wales in the same period.
The figure rose 1.6 per cent from the last quarter of 2008 and is up 19 per cent on the first quarter of last year.
The Insolvency Service data for companies also showed a 56 per cent rise in firms going to the wall.
A total 4,941 liquidations were recorded, while 316 firms went into receivership, and 1,311 went into administration.
The new figures come as the Treasury committee pinned the blame for the financial crisis squarely on the banks.
