Recurrent revenue up till the end of May 2006 amounted to Lm322.7 million, and made up 33.9 per cent of this year’s budget forecast.

Compared to the first five months of 2005, this revenue represented an increase of Lm18.4 million, or 6 per cent, the National Statistics Office said yesterday. The recurrent revenue for the same period in 2005 amounted to Lm304.3 million, which accounted for 33.9 per cent of the actual final outturn.

At the same time, total expenditure, excluding sinking funds contributions and direct loan repayments, amounted to Lm386.1 million, a decrease of Lm11.3 million, or 2.8 per cent, from the Lm397.4 million expended in the same period in 2005.

The total expenditure for the January to May period amounted to 38.4 per cent of the approved 2006 estimate. Total expenditure for the same period in 2005 made up 40.9 per cent of the actual total expenditure for the year.

The shortfall between recurrent revenue and total expenditure during the period under review amounted to Lm63.4 million this year, compared to a shortfall of Lm93.1 million one year ago.

During the first five months of 2006, there were no proceeds from sinking funds on converted loans, while in the same period in 2005, proceeds from this source amounted to Lm3.8 million.

Loan repayments between January and May 2006 amounted to Lm0.06 million; and there were no such repayments in 2005. Contributions to the sinking funds amounted to Lm6.4 million and Lm6 million respectively for the 2006 and 2005 comparative periods. During the first five months of this year, local loans amounting to Lm25 million were taken up, while during the same period last year, Lm76.5 million loans were taken up.

There was no resort to foreign borrowing in either of the comparative periods. Proceeds from the disposal of shares owned by the government this year amounted to Lm74.2 million. The increase of Lm18.4 million in recurrent revenue during the first five months of 2006, when compared to the same period one year earlier, was reported mainly under Income Tax (+Lm8.2 million), Social Security Contributions (+Lm4 million), Social Security Contributions (+Lm4 million), Customs and Excise (+Lm3.4 million), Licences, Taxes and Fines (+Lm4.9 million), Value Added Tax (+Lm5.1 million), and Dividends on Investment (+Lm1.6 million). A relative decline in revenue was recorded under Central Bank of Malta (–Lm4 million), Grants (–Lm2.9 million), and Miscellaneous Receipts (–Lm2.8 million).

Recurrent expenditure (excluding Public Debt Servicing) during the first five months of 2005 amounted to Lm313.5 million, an increase of Lm1.7 million, or 0.5 per cent on the Lm311.8 million expended during the same period in 2005.

Recurrent expenditure for the periods under review makes up 40.1 per cent of the budgetary estimates for 2006, while the 2005 figure corresponds to 40.7 per cent of the actual final outturn for that year.