Britain sets aside £10bn for payments to EU more than eight years after Brexit vote

Britain has set aside more than £10bn for post-Brexit payments to the EU as the UK continues sending billions to Brussels despite having left the bloc years ago.

- ARCHIE MITCHELL

To cover the cost of the UK's divorce from Europe, the government has accounted for £10.6bn in future payments for Brussels staff and diplomats' pensions, as well as Britain's preexisting financial obligations.

Official government figures this week revealed that the provision for continuing "EU liabilities" has fallen from £31.7bn a year ago and £38.7bn the year before. But the figure still stands at more than £10bn, with critics saying the UK is still "paying vast sums for a terrible Brexit deal".

The revelation comes after Rachel Reeves' Budget piled £40bn of new taxes on households and businesses - with the chancellor claiming the changes were necessary to fill a black hole in the public finances left by the Conservatives.