Where does the money go?

Can you guess which public service gets the bigger share?

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4. Round 4
5. Round 5
6. Round 6
7. Round 7
8. Round 8
9. Round 9
10. Round 10

HM Treasury public spending

Which area gets the bigger share?

For each £1 of public service spending, choose the area that receives more.

Income tax and National Insurance go into public funds; they are not ring-fenced for individual services. This game uses spending shares to illustrate one possible split.

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How to play

Each round shows two areas of public service spending. Pick the one with the larger share. The game uses ten rounds, then shows your score and lets you copy it.

About the figures

The amounts come from HM Treasury's Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2026, Table 4.2. It reports UK public sector expenditure on services by function. We use the 2025–26 outturn, which may be revised in later releases. The table reports rounded amounts, so the calculated pence per pound are approximate.

The game divides each service area's amount by total public sector expenditure on services, then applies that share to £1. This illustrates one way to apportion a pound. Income tax and National Insurance receipts are not ring-fenced for individual services; they go into pooled public funds, alongside other taxes and borrowing.

Try Then and now, Minimum wage through the years or Guess the gross next.