Public finance bulletin December 2004

Headline Comparisons

• Central government current receipts in November were 4.9% higher than in the same month last year. This month's Pre-Budget Report forecast for 2004ְ5 implies an increase over last year's levels of 7.2% for the year as a whole and of 7.5% for the period from November 2004 to March 2005. Although the latest month's data appears disappointing in isolation, revisions to previous months have lifted the increase over the year to date from 6.3% in last month's release to 6.8%. This brings it closer to the Pre-Budget Report forecast.
• Central government current spending in November were 9.2% higher than in the same month last year. This month's Pre-Budget Report forecast for 2004ְ5 implies an increase over last year's levels of 5.2% for the year as a whole and of 2.8% for the period from November 2004 to March 2005. The latest figures show an increase over last year's levels of 7.3% for the year to date.
• Public sector net investment in November was ñ.4bn, or 17.8% higher than in the same month last year. This month's Pre-Budget Report forecast for 2004ְ5 implies an increase of 55.8% for the year as a whole and an increase of 91.3% for the period from November 2004 to March 2005. The latest figures show an increase over last year's levels of 11.6% for the year to date.