According to NSO statistics, the Maltese government has achieved a significant increase in government revenue during the past few quarters despite rising expenditure and the increasing public debt figure. Government revenue has increased by 17.16% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same quarter of last year. On the other hand, government expenditure increased by 9.13% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same quarter last year.
Government revenue spiked in the last quarter of last year with a €289 million increase, increasing by 19.22%. However, Government expenditure also increased by 21.67% in the last quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter of last year.
The government’s debt-to-GDP ratio increased from 47.4% in the last quarter of 2024 to 48.1% in the first quarter of this year.
Speaking in parliament last week, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said that the government is gradually raising revenue and controlling its expenditure to gradually decrease its deficit, but the Minister of Finance made no reference to energy subsidies which have taken the largest part of the government’s expenditure increase in the past few years. Prime Minister Robert Abela boasted in Parliament that Malta was the only country that didn’t raise energy and electricity prices during the Covid pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Newsroom
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