FINANCIAL news rarely occupies headlines for very long unless it is dreadful.

The news that the public finances for the month of January were in surplus to the tune of nearly £9 billion did not, therefore, hold the attention of the public – or that of the commentators – for very long. It is, none the less, a significant moment.

For years, even well before the recession, we have been spending too much by running a deficit. Government spends more than it raises in taxes and borrows the difference. As the debt builds up it becomes a burden on any future prosperity, and even on future generations – we have been borrowing and spending in the expectation that our children and grandchildren will pay it off.

Of course the optimists who framed this economic policy believed economic growth would generate sufficient future taxes to pay off the debt. But, by 2010, the government was borrowing £1 for every £3 it spent; running a structural deficit – the gap between spending and tax revenue was so large it would never be covered by tax revenue from renewed economic growth.

The answer was simple – cut spending. Cutting spending was the central issue of the last election. The parties differed over how far and how fast to cut it, but they all agreed that it had to be cut.

When it emerged no party had an overall majority two parties set aside profound differences on many issues to sort out the deficit in our public finances.

It is taking longer than we expected. The recession was much worse than first thought and the deficit was much larger.

But public finances for January confirm the deficit has now been halved. With nearly two million new jobs we now have the highest level of employment ever; incomes have started to rise again and at a time when prices are actually falling. We are still only half way to eliminating the deficit, but the pace will quicken and there are real grounds for optimism.

This is the moment of maximum danger – when politicians, seeing the improvement in the public finances, want to cash in by easing the pace to buy some popularity.

But good times never last forever and you need to save for a rainy day – to fix the roof when the sun is shining.

There are certainties in life for individuals and governments alike.

One of the greatest certainties remains, as Dickens’ Mr Micawber said: “Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds nineteen shillings and six pence, result: happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result: misery."

As a nation we need to re-learn the discipline of adding up correctly and run a surplus.