* FTSE down 0.6 percent * Weak economic data weighs on miners and oils * Barclays leads banks higher after results By David Brett LONDON, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Britain's top share index fell on Tuesday, as worries over the size of government debt around the world and its potential impact on global growth knocked sentiment in the mining and oil sectors. Data showed Britain's service sector performed better than expected in June but growth was not strong enough to generate jobs. That followed poor manufacturing data from the U.S., Europe, China and the UK on Monday, which reignited concern economic recovery was stalling, and took the shine off the U.S. securing a deal to avoid a humiliating default on its debt. "The problem is that there is too much debt, and how is that affecting the economy? We have suggested for some time that will make it very difficult for western economies, not least the United States, to grow," Iain Stewart, who manages the Newton Real Return Fund, said. He said he remains comfortable in defensive sectors such as drugmakers and companies with strong balance sheets, cash flow and dividend growth. U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower opening on Wall Street on Tuesday as investors braced themselves for more macro economic data ahead of Friday's all-important non-farm payroll figures. June U.S. personal income and consumption data will be the main feature released at 1230 GMT. London's blue-chip index fell 35.36 points, or 0.6 percent to 5,739.07 by 1053 GMT, adding to the previous session's 0.7 percent retreat. Miners and integrated oils fell in tandem with commodity prices as investors fretted over the outlook for demand. Gold , however, neared record highs as investors backed its safe-haven qualities to protect their returns, helping boost Fresnillo . RESULTS IMPRESS The precious metals miner rose 4 percent, faring better than a broader sector retreat as it posted a 92 percent surge in first-half core profit and raised its dividend by 128 percent. . Barclays climbed 3.6 percent as traders said its results were mixed but still better than expected. The UK-focused bank revealed first-half profit fell by a third, offsetting a sharp improvement in bad-debt charges, and said it would cut about 3,000 jobs this year to reduce costs. "The market was expecting a weak number, which has not materialised. Given the recent underperformance we remain bullish on the prospects," Atif Latif, director of trading at Guardian Stockbroker, said. The banking sector prevented the FTSE 100 from sustaining heavier losses, with HSBC adding 1.7 percent to Monday's results-fuelled 2 percent gain. Standard Chartered , which reports results on Wednesday, rose 0.8 percent. Hargreaves Lansdown dropped 9.2 percent as traders cited the impact of new rules, published on Monday by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), looking to ban payments by fund managers to platform providers. Citigroup says this is a reversal of the position adopted by the FSA on payments to platforms in documents published at the end of 2010. The broker says this will mean that Hargreaves' Vantage Business Model must change, with the firm having to move to customer charging, although Citigroup says that, most importantly, this is model change, not revenue loss. British pumps and valves maker Weir rose 0.3 percent after posting a 24 percent jump in first half pretax profit. Shire shed 3.3 percent as JP Morgan Cazenove downgraded the drugmaker to "neutral" from "overweight", citing valuation grounds. Shire's shares have risen 32 percent in 2011, compared with a 2.4 percent fall in the FTSE 100 . Defensive shares on the whole were a support to the index, with utilities such as Severn Trent and power provider National Grid up 1.3 and 0.8 percent respectively.

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