In all honesty an awful lot is spent on debt repayment. We had two or three years where Mr Wench was either in a very poorly paying job or at college. Plus I had a two or three years of living far beyond my means pre Mr Wench which I am now paying for. The bulk of things had just started to be paid back but with price rises being what they are at the moment any extra cash we may have had is just being swallowed up.
We don't live beyond our means. Our gas and electic bills have gone up and our weekly food shop has increased by about 15/20% without us buying more. Plus a substantial amount of my salary has to go into a savings account for possibly future unemployment or possible medical expenditure.
Seriously, two average salaries down south don't go terribly far. And yes I know it is my choice to live here which is why I normally don't bitch about it.