ZAGREB, Oct 25 (Hina) - According to the revised state budget for 2002, state spending will have to be increased by 370 million kuna (EUR50 million) due to health expenses which have exceeded the planned amount by 1.1 billion
(EUR148.64 million), Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac said on Friday.
ZAGREB, Oct 25 (Hina) - According to the revised state budget for
2002, state spending will have to be increased by 370 million kuna
(EUR50 million) due to health expenses which have exceeded the
planned amount by 1.1 billion (EUR148.64 million), Finance
Minister Mato Crkvenac said on Friday. #L#
Crkvenac told reporters in Zagreb that the saved funds in the
revised budget totalled 1.168 billion kuna (EUR157.83 million). At
the same time, some expenses have increased by 540 million kuna
(EUR72.97 million), so that the net amount saved totals 628 million
kuna (EUR84.86 million). If the amount that has been saved in
employment and regional development funds is added to this, the cut
in spending amounts to 761 million kuna (EUR102.83 million).
If this were the whole story, one would have reason to smile, but the
smile will eventually be a wry one, Crkvenac said.
This year's health care spending will exceed the planned annual
limit of 1.08 billion kuna (EUR145.94 million), which means that
all saved funds have already been spent for health care, Crkvenac
said.
The government will therefore propose to the parliament a revised
budget with an 370 million kuna (EUR50 million) increase in
expenses, which would make this year's spending total 77.1 billion
(EUR10.41 billion).
The finance minister said the health sector was preparing
activities which would prevent a similar situation from recurring
next year. Crkvenac said the budgetary deficit would not be
affected by the proposed correction of the spending, and would
account for 4.25 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as
planned.
The minister said that the reduction of budgetary spending included
cuts in material expenses (around EUR16.62 million), financial
expenses (around EUR23.24 million), subsidies (around EUR8.5
million), investment, construction and equipment expenses (around
EUR46.35 million) as well as lower expenses for the repayment of the
capital sum of foreign loans and securities (30.81 and 29.72
million euros respectively).
(hina) rml sb