Why credit cards are always stacked against you. One of the most irresponsible advertising slogans of all time was surely “Don’t put it off, put it on!”, which cheerfully adorned Barclaycard ads in the 1990s. By today’s standards, the idea that encouraging people to take out high-interest loans to buy things they can’t afford was…

Cut your spending on coffee, transport and unnecessary holidays, and you’ll have more for merry-making. Where does all the money go? It’s a question that invites a lot of sighing and staring into the void. But rather than merely wondering, we’ve done a bit of digging and can now tell you exactly what we’re all…