Unravelling the Budget allocations
Tuesday, June 16, 2020 0:01
By TONY WATIMA
The total budget is Sh3.2 trillion but government's total spending is Sh2.73 trillion.
The total budget is Sh3.2 trillion but government's total spending is Sh2.73 trillion.
All public debt obligations are under the Consolidated Fund Services, which are discretionary spending – obligations government must meet above other obligations, therefore, in law the budget is Sh3.2 trillion.
Now, media houses can choose to use any of the two figures but not the Parliamentary Budget Office which guides Parliament on the strict application of the Public Finance Laws during budgeting that stated the budget as Sh2.7 trillion as presented by the Treasury.
Tax relief is simply giving back money the government would have collected in taxes, while VAT refunds and pending bill payments are simply the government paying back money it owed people and businesses and repaying, so a debt payment cannot be classified as a bailout.
