CONSUMER borrowing in Wales has "rocketed" and big spenders are buying themselves in to trouble, new figures show.

The first report on debt, published yesterday by the Welsh Consumer Council, warns that the number of people taking out credit agreements has grown dramatically in the past 25 years.

Since 1999, Welsh Citizen Advice Bureaux have dealt with more than 56,000 debt enquires, with a total figure of £120 million per year.

Cliff Suller, vice chairman of Newport Citizen Advice Bureau, says borrowing money is too easy.

"To some people borrowing money is irresistible," he warned.

"I say the onus is just as much on the lenders. When they advertise they should make it abundantly clear that loans have to be paid for and they should take more scrutiny before they are willing to lend their money."

Mr Suller believes people also get in to debt because they do not understand what benefits they are entitled to.

He said: "I would say there are a large number of factors where benefit claimants do not get what they are entitled to.

"They are incorrectly assessed and neither are they given the correct information about benefits they can claim in place of what they have been turned down for."

Claire Whyley, (oictured) senior policy officer at the Welsh Consumer Council, said: "Borrowing is a bit more commonplace than four or five years ago.

"Credit is easier for the majority of people to get. That's not a problem but people look at how much they can borrow than how much they can repay."

She said lower wages and higher unemployment were the main reasons for Wales' high debts.

"People in Wales have less money. That's the top and bottom of it. They are not going out and borrowing money they cannot repay. They just don't have enough money," she added.

*'Borrowing and Debt in Wales: a preliminary investigation' is published jointly by the Welsh Consumer Council, the National Association of Citizen Advice Bureaux and the Trading Standards service in Wales. The report is priced at £12 and is available from the Welsh Consumer Council , 5th Floor, Longcross Court, 47 Newport Road, Cardiff CF24 0WL.