Start with a question
Most people arrive with a question, not a wish to browse data. Here are the ones we can answer from official figures, in one line first.
For example, income tax and National Insurance on £35,000 come to about £6,280 a year. See how government spending is divided.
Try the calculator →65% have waited under 18 weeks. The standard is 92%. Pick your NHS area to compare.
See waits near you →Put your area against the UK and against areas like yours, for pay, jobs and election results.
Compare your area →Prices are still rising when the rate falls: it is how fast. See it against the 2% target, and what it means for pay.
See inflation →Inflation, growth, spending, tax, borrowing and debt for the UK, the G7 and others, all measured the same way.
See the comparison →Borrowing is the gap between money collected and money spent. See how it has moved over time.
See the gap →One person can be waiting for more than one treatment. See the trend and the longest waits.
See the trend →Plain-English summaries of each vote and bill, with no opinions attached.
See this week →Quick answers
- UK national debt: how much is it? The UK national debt is £2.9 trillion, 94% of GDP (2025-26). The latest figures, the trend, interest costs and how it compares with other countries.
- NHS waiting list: how long is it? 7.1 million treatments are waiting in England (July 2026); 65% within 18 weeks. The latest NHS waiting list figures, by specialty and area.
- Average UK salary: what is typical pay? Typical full-time pay in the UK is £767 a week, about £39,900 a year (2025). Pay by area, over time and against prices.
- UK government spending: where does it go? The UK government spent £1,360 billion in 2025-26. What the money went on: pensions and benefits, health, education, defence and interest, with the figure per person.
- UK unemployment: claimant count and rate 3.9% of working-age people claimed unemployment-related benefits in August 2026. The claimant rate over time and by area, and how the UK compares.
- UK economic growth: how fast is the economy growing? The UK economy grew 1.3% in 2025, 11th highest of 16 economies. Growth by country, the IMF forecast and income per head.
- UK general election 2024 results by party and constituency Labour won 407 of 643 constituencies on 4 July 2024. Seats and votes by party, the closest and biggest results and turnout for every constituency.
- UK tax receipts: how much tax does the UK collect? The UK government collected £1,209 billion in 2025-26: income tax, National Insurance, VAT and more. Each tax, its share and the amount per person.
- Is pay keeping up with inflation? Since 2002 typical full-time pay is up 96% in cash terms and prices 86%: about 6% higher in real terms. Year by year, with the chart.
- UK population: how many people live in the UK? About 69.5 million people live in the UK (2025). Age, home ownership and education from the 2021 Census, and the biggest and smallest areas.
- How many MPs does each party have? Labour has 403 of 649 sitting MPs. The number of MPs for each party in the House of Commons, from Parliament’s own records.
- UK NHS and health spending: how much does the UK spend? The UK government spent £258 billion on health in 2025-26: 19% of all government spending. By year, with the share of GDP and the amount per person.
- UK defence spending: how much does the UK spend? The UK government spent £65 billion on defence in 2025-26: 5% of all government spending. By year, with the share of GDP and the amount per person.
- UK education spending: how much does the UK spend? The UK government spent £126 billion on education in 2025-26: 9% of all government spending. By year, with the share of GDP and the amount per person.
- UK spending on pensions and benefits: how much? The UK government spent £407 billion on pensions and benefits in 2025-26: 30% of all government spending. By year, with the share of GDP and the amount per person.
What we cannot answer yet
We only answer a question when an official dataset can answer it. If you have one, tell us on the About & corrections page.
Also see everything over time and what changed this week. Every answer is written from the same data as the rest of the site and updates nightly.