Can deeply indebted Britain actually afford a meaningful rise in interest rates?

This is not just a question for the UK: the same can be asked of the world economy as a whole.

Paul Krugman has been unrelenting in his derision. The lesson of the 2010/11 crisis, he notes, is “don’t panic”; there will be no return to 1970s style stagflation.

Well, maybe, but as Andy Haldane, chief economist at the Bank of England, observed in a recent speech, the chances of it are a good deal higher this time around than last. 

Starved for more than a year of the ability to spend, consumers won’t much care what it costs. They’ll pay almost anything for a pint in the pub.

Jeremy Warner Telegraph 24 March 2021

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2021/03/24/britain-has-much-debt-handle-higher-interest-rates/