Government Adopts Supplementary Budget, Plans EUR 70m Surplus
The government adopted on Thursday the supplementary 2008 budget bill, cutting expenditure by almost EUR 50m, while revenues are projected to grow by EUR 250m. This will change the EUR 230m budget deficit, planned for 2008, into a EUR 69.4m surplus.
The supplementary budget envisages revenues to the tune of EUR 8.88bn with expenditures standing at EUR 8.82bn, Finance Minister Andrej Bajuk told the press after the government session.
Expenditure will be cut by EUR 49.7m, Bajuk said and added that the number includes the 3.4% wage hike in the public sector that was brought about by the unexpected inflation spurt in the second half of 2007.
Cuts will be made at all ministries, mainly in investments. The biggest cut will hit the Defence Ministry, the expenditure of which will be lowered by EUR 30m, the minister added.
The increase in revenues was meanwhile mainly caused by an EUR 162m hike in companies income tax. The government also expects to get more money from excise duty and value added tax.
The government also decided today to take part in the share capital increase in NKBM, Slovenia's second largest bank. The supplementary budget allocates EUR 63m in order to maintain the state's share in the bank.
"Slovenian banks are solid and we have no doubt as to their stability, but their share capital has been relatively low," Bajuk said.
The bill also allocates EUR 14.5m for the state's participation in the share capital increase in NLB, Slovenia's largest bank.
The government also adopted the budget implementation bill for 2008 and 2009, which brings no major changes. The bill does say that the country would decrease the projected amount of loans by EUR 478m.
Also decreasing in the supplementary budget are European funds, which will be cut by EUR 30m. "But this is not a loss of EU funds, it remains an opportunity for the future," Bajuk said.
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