Deficit up by €80m in first quarter

The shortfall between recurrent revenue and total expenditure for the first three months of the year increased by €80.4 million and amounted to €210.1 million when compared to the same period of 2007, the National Statistics Office said yesterday.

An increase of €110.2 million in total expenditure was partly offset by an increase of €29.8 million in recurrent revenue. The consolidated fund recorded an increase of €14.9 million in revenues from income taxes, while revenues from fees of office and from value added tax increased by €5.5 million and by €5.4 million respectively.

Dividends on investment also added €7.8 million during the period under review.

Recurrent expenditure amounted to €520.5 million, an increase of €70.7 million compared to the first quarter of last year. Major increases in recurrent expenditure were recorded under the social security benefits (+€28.0 million), and under the ministry for rural affairs and the environment (+€9.4 million).

The interest component of the public debt servicing costs increased by €6.3 million, and amounted to €59.5 million.

The government's outlay on its capital programme amounted to €82.2 million, an increase of €33.3 million when compared to the expenditure of €48.9 million for the same period last year. Capital expenditure under the Ministry for Investment, Industry and Information Technology, and under the Ministry for Rural Affairs and the Environment increased by €13.6 million and €10.3 million respectively.

No new loans were taken up during the first quarter.

The central government debt outstanding at the end of March amounted to €3,298.2 million, an increase of €93.7 million compared to the gross central government debt outstanding at the end of March 2007. While long-term borrowing increased by €136.4 million, short-term borrowing and foreign borrowing declined by €59.3 million and €6.6 million respectively. At the end of March, the stock of euro coins added to the gross government debt position amounted to €23.3 million