A crunch deal to raise the US debt ceiling has been voted through by the House of Representatives.
The agreement – which aims to avert a potentially catastrophic scenario where the US defaults on its national debts – passed through the Republican-majority House.
The proposal, which passed the House by 314-117 votes, will now move to the Senate. The Senate’s majority leader, Chuck Schumer, has vowed to move quickly to pass the bill.
The main purpose of the deal is to increase the US debt limit from $31.4trn (£25.3trn) – which it achieves by suspending the borrowing limit until January 2025 rather than setting a new level.
It also averts a situation where the US defaults on its national debts – a scenario that could have huge impacts both for the US and the wider world economy.
The vote comes after President Joe Biden and leader of the House of Representatives, speaker Kevin McCarthy, reached an agreement over the country’s debt ceiling.
In order to secure the agreement, the Democrats were forced to make concessions to the typically pro-small-state Republicans, including spending cuts and policy concessions.
In a speech before the vote, Mr McCarthy praised the bill’s budget cuts, which he said were needed to curb Washington’s “runaway spending”.
