Revenue outstrips expenditure for first quarter
Revenue continued to outstrip expenditure in the first quarter, making it the third period in a row in which government finances registered a surplus.
The National Statistics Office figures released yesterday, which cover the extended government including its agencies and local councils, recorded a surplus of €44 million.
This is the figure used by Eurostat to determine the strength or otherwise of public finances.
It is the first time that a surplus was registered in the first quarter, traditionally a bad period for government finances. In the first three months of last year the general government recorded a deficit of €68 million in a year that went on to end with a record surplus of €101 million.
The consolidated fund, which refers only to central government finances, registered a deficit of €13 million, the lowest in many years. However, this transformed into a surplus when the general government accounts were taken into consideration.
The figures showed revenue topping €979 million, an increase of €137 million over the same period last year. This made up for a €25 million increase in expenditure (compared to Q1 last year), which stood at €935 million.
According to the NSO...