Malta Opposition Condemns Government's Fiscal Performance

by Lorys Charalambous, Tax-News.com, Cyprus

24 August 2001

Official figures on Malta's financial status so far this year, released this week by the National Statistics Office, were greeted with criticism and disbelief from the Malta Labour Party (MLP).

Labour Party spokesman, Leo Brincat, declared that the government had lost control of the country's finances as he pointed to the fact that public debt had increased by Lm96.62 million within a year. 'It appears that as time passes, the government is becoming more and more dependent on loans through government stock issues, so much so that in the last two years the government borrowed more than Lm134 million,' he said.

The National Statistics Office said that compared to one year earlier, during the first seven months of this year, Ordinary Revenue increased by Lm19.0 million, or 5.6 per cent, and amounted to Lm359.8 million. During the period under review, revenue from VAT increased by Lm6.0 million or 10.1 per cent. At the same time, revenue from Income Tax and Social Security increased by Lm5.4 million and Lm6.7 million respectively. Revenue from profits on lotteries has this year increased by Lm1.0 million.

Total Ordinary Revenue to date makes up 54.0 per cent of this year's original budgeted revenue forecast. During the January to July period last year, Government was also in receipt of Lm12.0 million by way of proceeds from asset sales, and of Lm6.0 million in the form of grants.

Referring to the increasing gap between ordinary revenue and total expenditure, Mr Brincat argued that the government had failed to deal sensibly with public expenditure despite the obvious increase in the burden on taxpayers.

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