consol

consol, British government security without a maturity date. The name is a contraction for Consolidated Annuities, a form of British government stock that originated in 1751. The first issue of consols carried an interest rate of 3 percent (reduced to 2.75 percent in 1888 and to 2.5 percent in 1902). Between the years 1926 and 1932, 4 percent consols were issued. Although consols formed the larger part of Britain’s funded debt before World War I, in 1961 they accounted for less than 3 percent of the total national debt because of the vast expansion of other forms of government debt during the two world wars. The 4 percent consols became redeemable on three months’ notice after Feb. 1, 1957; the 2.5 percent consols are in practice irredeemable by the government, and their price tends to vary with the bank rate.