Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today claimed that the country's debt has passed the RM1 trillion mark, compared with RM300 billion previously.

"We have found that our finance (status) eroded significantly (to the extent) we are having problems in (repaying) our debts, which have increased to a trillion ringgit.

"This has never been done by us before... if previously our debt stood below RM300 billion, now the debt has exceeded RM1 trillion," Mahathir said during his first monthly assembly as head of the Prime Minister's Department in Putrajaya today.

He urged the government officers to work with the administration to reduce the debt level.

He also stressed the importance of upholding the separation of powers doctrine to curb any misappropriation of funds in the future.

The national debt figure provided by the PM today is far higher than the official figure provided by the previous administration.

The Finance Ministry previously said the government recorded RM687.43 billion in debts as of September 2017.

Earlier this month, The Edge Financial Daily reported the government's debt had grown at an average of 10 percent a year from RM266.72 billion in 2007 to RM687.43 billion as of September 2017 due to excessive spending.

The financial daily warned that the national debt could exceed RM1 trillion by 2021 if it continues to grow at the same average rate of 10 percent as in the past decade.

Soon after assuming office as the nation's seventh prime minister on May 10, Mahathir pledged to reduce the government spending.