The government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines ended the first half of 2015 with a deficit on the overall balance that was EC$13 million more than the same period of 2014.
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves told Parliament on Tuesday that the overall balance on the current account was a deficit of EC$21.1 million, compared to EC$10.8 million in June of 2014.
He was responding a question submitted by Leader of the Opposition Arnhim Eustace about the fiscal out turn for the period ending June 30, 2015 as compared with the same period in 2014.
Gonsalves, who is also Minister of Finance, told lawmakers that total revenue fell to EC$256.3 million in 2015, compared to EC$256.78 last year.
Current revenue was EC$214 million, compared to EC$252 million.
Total expenditure was EC$280.5 million, EC$13 million more than the period under review in 2014.
Recurrent expenditure also increased, moving from EC$242.27 million in 2014 to EC$247.5 million this year.
Capital expenditure jumped from EC$25 million in 2014 to EC$32.97 million.
Gonsalves told lawmakers that taxes on income went up by 9 per cent this year compared to last year.
Taxes on international trade went up by 8.3 per cent, while taxes on domestic transactions also increased, rising 2.8 per cent.
The finance minister also said that taxes on licences and fees fell, but did not give any indication of the percentage or dollar amount.
He said capital revenue was up by 200 per cent mainly due to the sale of state lands in Canouan.
On the recurrent expenditure side of the government’s balance sheet, personal emoluments had increased by almost 2 per cent, moving from EC$114.3 million to EC$116.2 million.
Wages increased also, rising 3.8 per cent.
Interest payment increased by EC$1.6 million to EC$23 million in 2015, while transfers and subsidies increased by 4 per cent.
This government is so lucky interest payments are so low.
Is this what we call doing wonderfully well?Watch a time for SVG.They really thought that governing a country was like going into a courtroom and winning on an issue of technicality.Now the majority of vincentian are catching their royal to exist from one day to the next.