There was today significant news about how the Government is getting on its campaign to make inroads in to that debt. It is clear that the process is laborious and not dissimilar from trying to turn around an oil tanker.

The bad news is that the nation’s debt has now finally topped the £1trillion mark - the current net debt total of £1.004 trillion is 64.2% of UK gross domestic product. The good news is that Government borrowing in December fell for the fourth month in a row. The figures show that the nation is making good progress, with borrowing over £11bn lower than in the same period last year and the Chancellor is beating his own targets.

In short, the debt is still rising, but at a much slower pace, and slowly but surely the Government is getting control over the situation. Twelve to 18 months ago the debt was leaping upwards, now it is only inching upwards. That achievement represents a milestone on a long journey

Huge figures like £1 trillion are beyond the comprehension of just about everybody outside of the Treasury. The really good news will come when that actual total debt figure starts to slip backwards. For that to happen, we’ll need a combination of the cuts and economic growth to bring in tax revenues. It’s an incredibly difficult balance for Government to strike.

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