How the national debt affects your finances

Rachel Reeves has changed the rules, but why does that matter?

Pile of coins
The government raises money through tax but can also borrow when spending needs to be boosted
(Image credit: Getty Images/Dilok Klaisataporn)

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has altered how national debt is calculated as part of efforts to balance the books in her first Budget.

It comes as the country's national debt has reached £2.7 billion, according to the Office for National Statistics - and there are warnings that it could get worse.

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Marc Shoffman is an NCTJ-qualified award-winning freelance journalist, specialising in business, property and personal finance. He has a BA in multimedia journalism from Bournemouth University and a master’s in financial journalism from City University, London. His career began at FT Business trade publication Financial Adviser, during the 2008 banking crash. In 2013, he moved to MailOnline’s personal finance section This is Money, where he covered topics ranging from mortgages and pensions to investments and even a bit of Bitcoin. Since going freelance in 2016, his work has appeared in MoneyWeek, The Times, The Mail on Sunday and on the i news site.