Britain's deficit - our national overdraft, if you like - is expected to be £163 billion next year.
Our debt - already 54 per cent of GDP (the Government's aim had been to keep it below 40 per cent) - is projected to peak at 75 per cent in 2014-15 and isn't expected to fall back to 40 per cent or less till about 2035.
These are big numbers.
The deficit will have a huge impact on the economy and British politics for at least the next decade. But this is no abstract preoccupation for economists and politicians. Dealing with the deficit will mean tough choices, the consequences of which could affect eveyone's finances.
That's why Moneybox has devoted the whole of this week's programme to the deficit: the scale of the problem; how we got here; what we can do about it; and what it might mean for Moneybox listeners.
Paul Lewis reports and will also speak to Morven Whyte, portfolio manager at Redmayne Bentley Stockbrokers and Adrian Lowcock, senior investment adviser at the IFA Best Invest.
BBC Radio 4's Money Box was broadcast on Saturday at 1204 BST and repeated on Sunday at 2102 BST.