General Government Balance.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 February 2005

Tuesday, 1 February 2005

Questions (22)

Róisín Shortall

Question:

20 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Finance the amount in euro of the general Government balance, as estimated by his Department for 2004; the reason this figure is not available with the January 2005 Exchequer returns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2495/05]

Written answers

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

The estimated outturn for the 2004 general Government balance, GGB, is a surplus of €1,375 million or 0.9% of GDP. The Exchequer statement relates to the Exchequer account only and is cash based. The GGB is a wider definition of the Government finances and includes some aspects of accrual accounting. The official GGB data for each member state are published in March and September every year by EUROSTAT in line with EU requirements.

Question No. 21 answered with QuestionNo. 17.