(First published July 7, 2020)Ministers finalising their bids for the 2021 Budget will be buoyed by the news the Government’s books continue to be in better shape than feared at the end of last year. A recovering economy has meant higher than expected tax revenue and lower that expected expenses. The numbers, which are far better than expected across the board, could put pressure on the Government to lift its allowances for Budget 2021, which will be delivered on 21 May. The Budget Policy Statement currently has the allowances at $2.625b for operating spending and $7.8b in the multi-year capital allowance. An interesting side-note to the numbers is that the Government continues to see tax revenue from cigarettes fall well below forecast.

Source: Stuff March 31, 2021 21:33 UTC