The turmoil on the international financial markets is beyond the comprehension of most of us. How the financial systems of different countries are intertwined and, to an extent, are inter-dependent is still a mystery.

The sums of money swirling around those systems, running into trillions of pounds, are mind-boggling and seem unreal. But the fall-out from this global upheaval is now beginning to impact at ground level.

People like us, maybe even us or our neighbours, are not just feeling the pinch; they are having all hope squeezed out of them.

The Citizens Advice Bureau, which runs a government-funded debt counselling service, has revealed a shocking level of debt and hardship in the province. The figures — £4.8m of new debts; soaring mortgage arrears; millions owed on credit cards and loans and accelerating business failures.

And these statistics could be only the tip of the ice-berg, for they refer only to the work of the debt counselling team, not the whole level of debts and misery

dealt with the CAB as a whole. Behind these figures are people in distress. Some are driven to the brink of self-harm, others find themselves homeless because they have been unable to keep up repayments on their homes, often through no fault of their own but due to marriage break-ups.

Of course, others have borrowed credit to sustain a lifestyle which their income could not keep pace with. They lived as if tomorrow would never come, but tomorrow is here today for them.

It is one of the ironies of the current financial climate, that banks and other lending institutions are taking a very hard line with defaulters. They want

either their money back or the debtor’s assets. Yet, those very same financial institutions are quite happy to take tax-payers’ money, via the Government, to underwrite their own financial standing which has been damaged by past profligacy.

It is a sad commentary on modern life that rich financial institutions are offered limitless help when they get into difficulties, yet the ordinary person is allowed to go to the wall.

It is also worth noting that the vital debt counselling service offered by CAB is funded solely by government.

The banks and other financial institutions have

kept their hands firmly in their pockets. Relatively speaking, the service costs very little to run and the money lenders could show a more human face by footing part of the bill. It could even be argued that it is in their long-term interests to have debtors given professional, independent advice which would enable them to pay back what they owe and also hold onto their assets.

The alarming rise in firms going to the wall shows that the recession is beginning to bite on the business community.

That can only mean more misery.

For every firm that goes out of business, there will be several people who will find their homes in jeopardy unless they find alternative employment swiftly.

At the very least their lifestyles will alter dramatically. And if all of that is not depressing enough, gas and electricity prices have just gone up again — both by almost 50% since this time last year.

A literal chill wind will be blowing through many Ulster homes this winter.