By the time you read this headline the national debt will have increased by another £20,832

THE black hole in the Government's balance sheet is growing by a staggering £3,472 EVERY SECOND.

That's £20,832 in the average six seconds it took to read the headline above. Official figures to be released on Thursday will lay bare the true extent of our national debt-showing Government net borrowing soared by an eye-watering £9BILLION in April.

Last night economists warned the rocketing debt means families must brace themselves for a "long and painful" round of TAX HIKES -plus hefty cuts to vital services like SCHOOLS and HOSPITALS.

Vicky Redwood, of Capital Economics, said: "Public finances are set to deteriorate dramatically. We expect net borrowing to rise to something like £200bn for the whole year."

And Howard Archer, of IHS Global Insight, warned: "Tax revenues are being decimated by the recession. Rising unemployment is resulting in higher benefit claims." The ballooning debt will strangle our economy for years and it shatters Chancellor Alistair Darling's Budget forecasts that public borrowing will peak at £175bn this year.

Sadly, the grim news comes just as the first green shoots of recovery begin to appear.

Reports out this week will show high street sales rising and banks finally lending more cash to struggling families and firms.

• Britain's still not working

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