Government spending on social benefits increased by 6.8 per cent in the
first nine months of this year. The increase was mainly due to higher expenditure on retirement pensions, children's allowances and bonuses, the NSO said.

Total expenditure on social security benefits for the first nine months this year amounted to €561.2 million, €35.9 million more than the corresponding period in 2011.

This was a result of an increase of €27.5 million in expenditure on contributory benefits. Expenditure on non-contributory benefits went up by €8.4 million.
The increase in expenditure for contributory benefits was mainly due to a €20.7 million increase in retirement pensions. There was also a €5.5m increase in spending on widows' contributory bonus and pensions. Spending on invalidity pensions decreased by €1.5 million.

Spending on children's allowance was up by €3.8 million to €32.7m and social assistance by €2.7 million.

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