Detroit files for bankruptcy

The city of Detroit in the United States has become the largest American city to file for bankruptcy. It has debts of more than £11 billion.

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Population fall fuelled descent into bankruptcy

A number of factors have been blamed for Detroit's fall into bankruptcy. The city lost a quarter of a million residents between 2000 and 2010. A population that in the 1950s reached 1.8 million is struggling to stay above 700,000.

Downtown Detroit Credit: Reuters

In recent months, the city has relied on state-backed loans to meet the payroll for its approximately 10,000 employees.

The US city of Detroit files for bankruptcy

Detroit has filed for the biggest ever bankruptcy in US history marking a new low for a city that was the powerhouse of the US car industry. In a letter accompanying the filing, Michigan's Governor Rick Snyder said:



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