A think tank published an overview of public spending in the United Kingdom. It described the components of public spending and examined trends in expenditure.
Source: Carl Emmerson, Christine Frayne and Sarah Love, A Survey of Public Spending in the UK, Briefing Note 43, Institute for Fiscal Studies (web publication only)
Links: Briefing Note (pdf)
Date: 2003-Dec
The 20th edition of British Social Attitudes was published. Support for raising taxes to spend more on health, education and social benefits was found to have nearly doubled over the period 1983-2003, from 32 per cent to 63 per cent: but young people were increasingly less supportive of the welfare state than their elders. People were less satisfied with the National Health Service than they were in 1983. People felt that there should be more students from working-class backgrounds in higher education. Attitudes towards working mothers had become more positive, and racial prejudice had gradually declined. (The survey has been conducted annually since 1983. Each survey consists of over 3,000 interviews with a representative, random sample of people in Great Britain.)
Source: Alison Park, John Curtice, Katarina Thomson, Lindsey Jarvis, and Catherine Bromley (eds.), British Social Attitudes: The 20th Report, SAGE Publications Ltd (020 7324 8500)
Links: NatCen press release (pdf) | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2)
Date: 2003-Dec
The government published new estimates of financial year outturns for some key public expenditure series, including total managed expenditure, by budgetary category; departmental expenditure limits, resource and capital, by departmental group; and total managed expenditure, by broad function. Total managed expenditure for 2002-03 was estimated at 419.1 billion, slightly lower than the July 2003 estimate of 419.9 billion.
Source: Press release 10 December 2003, HM Treasury (020 7270 4558)
Links: HMT press release
Date: 2003-Dec
The government announced that the first 'Whole of Government Accounts' (WGAs) published would be those for 2006-07. WGAs would provide a balance sheet showing assets and liabilities for the whole of the public sector - including local authorities, National Health Service trusts and public corporations, as well as central government departments - along with other information required by best-practice accounting methods. WGAs would be subject to independent scrutiny by the Comptroller and Auditor General.
Source: Press release 11 December 2003, HM Treasury (020 7270 4558)
Links: HMT press release
Date: 2003-Dec
Employers said that too much of the government's public service investment programme was being eaten up by extra costs. They blamed 'relatively generous' wage growth and disappointing productivity performance. The unit cost of public service provision had increased by 7.6 per cent over the previous year, ahead of the annual 4 per cent set out in the Budget.
Source: CBI Input into the Autumn 2003 Pre-Budget Report, Confederation of British Industry (020 7395 8247)
Links: Report (pdf) | CBI press release
Date: 2003-Nov
The Chancellor of the Exchequer reportedly asked ministers to set out how their spending plans helped women, when they made their annual funding bids. An internal pilot was also reportedly created, aimed at analysing how much was spent on men and on women under different government programmes.
Source: Financial Times, 27 November 2003
Links: No link
Date: 2003-Nov
The Northern Ireland Executive announced details (for consultation) of its proposals for public services spending, investment, and borrowing for the period 2004 to 2007. It said that the main spending priorities were health, education and infrastructure.
Source: Northern Ireland Draft Priorities and Budget 2004-2007, Northern Ireland Executive (028 9052 0500)
Links: Report (pdf) | Speech (pdf) | NIE press release (pdf)
Date: 2003-Oct
An article said that around 86,000 new jobs were created in the public sector in the year to June 2002, compared to the 118,000 rise in the previous year. Employment in the public sector had grown in three of the four years since 1998, by 354,000 in total, or around 7 per cent. Before these gains, employment in the public sector had fallen for over 15 years in a row: the number of public sector jobs was therefore still well below the levels of the 1970s and 1980s.
Source: Ole Black, Ian Richardson and Rhys Herbert, 'Jobs in the public sector: June 2002', Labour Market Trends, September 2003, Office for National Statistics, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Article (pdf)
Date: 2003-Sep
A House of Commons Library research briefing examined a variety of datasets providing different perspectives on the measurement of the burden of taxation (the share of income national or individual paid in tax).
Source: Ian Townsend, The Burden of Taxation, Research Paper 03/74, House of Commons Library (web publication only)
Links: Briefing (pdf)
Date: 2003-Sep
The Scottish Executive presented a draft budget setting out its spending plans for 2004-05.
Source: Draft Budget 2004-05, Scottish Executive, TSO (0870 606 5566)
Links: Report | Summary | SE press release
Date: 2003-Sep
In 2002 general government net borrowing was 14.4 billion, compared with net lending of 8.2 billion in 2001. This was the first deficit since 1997. Nonetheless general government debt as a percentage of gross domestic product fell from 38.9 per cent to 38.5 per cent. (The figures were supplied to the European Commission for the 'excessive deficit procedure' in accordance with the Maastricht Treaty.)
Source: Government Deficit and Debt under the Maastricht Treaty, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Aug
A White Paper showed the provisional outturn for departmental expenditure limits and annually managed expenditure in 2002-03, including information on individual estimates and administration cost limits. Total spending was 419.9 billion, up 7.7 per cent compared to 2001-02.
Source: Public Expenditure 2002-2003: Provisional Outturn, White Paper Cm 5884, HM Treasury, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: White Paper (pdf) | HMT press release
Date: 2003-Jul
The Office for National Statistics announced that (consistent with international guidelines for national accounts) National Health Service 'foundation trusts' would provisionally be classified in the public sector as central government bodies. The decision was based on a judgment that the government would have control of the general corporate policy of the trusts.
Source: Press release 2.7.03, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: ONS press release (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jul
At the end of June 2003 public sector net debt outstanding was 348.9 billion, equivalent to 31.9 per cent of gross domestic product (up from 30.5 per cent a year earlier).
Source: Public Sector Finances: June 2003, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034) and HM Treasury
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jul
The government presented its main supply estimates (reflecting overall public spending plans) for 2003-04. Total public spending for 'net resources' (current spending) was 359.1 billion, and for net capital spending 15.9 billion.
Source: Central Government Supply Estimates 2003 04 for the Year Ending 31 March 2004: Main supply estimates, HC 648, HM Treasury, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-May
At the end of March 2003 public sector net debt outstanding was 333 billion, equivalent to 30.8 per cent of gross domestic product (up from 30.2 per cent a year earlier).
Source: Public Sector Finances: March 2003, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034) and HM Treasury
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Apr
Public sector debt: December 2002
At the end of December 2002, public sector net debt outstanding was equivalent to 32.1 per cent of gross domestic product (up from 31.4 per cent a year earlier).
Source: Public Sector Accounts: Fourth Quarter 2002, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Mar
Public sector net investment in the first nine months of 2002-03 was 6.1 billion, only slightly higher than the same period in 2001-02, and well below the budgeted figure for the full year of 14.3 billion.
Source: Public Sector Finances: January 2003, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Feb
Data supplied to the European Commission (under the provisions of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty on monetary union) showed that general government net borrowing in 2002 was 13.0 billion (1.3 per cent of gross domestic product), compared with net lending of 8.9 billion in 2001 (minus 0.9 per cent). At the end of 2002 general government debt was 400.9 billion, equivalent to 38.6 per cent of gross domestic product, compared with 386.1 billion (39.0 per cent) at the end of 2001.
Source: Government Deficit and Debt under the Maastricht Treaty, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Feb
Following controversy over the accounting treatment of Network Rail liabilities, a committee of MPs called for a review of the rules for accounting for public liabilities with varying degrees of perceived risk, to see if greater transparency can be achieved. The Conservative Opposition spokesperson reportedly accused the government of 'cooking the books'.
Source: National Statistics: The Classification Of Network Rail, First Report (Session 2002-03), HC 154, House of Commons Treasury Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522) | The Guardian, 21.1.03
Links: Report | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jan
A think tank published its annual analysis of the tax and spending issues confronting the Chancellor of the Exchequer in advance of the Budget. It estimated that existing tax and benefit reforms will take 800,000 children out of poverty between 2000-01 and 2004-05, but that the general rise in average earnings will put 200,000 back in, leaving the government 200,000 short of its target. It said the target could be achieved by raising the per-child element of the child tax credit by 3 per week (on top of the increase in line with average earnings that has already been promised) at a cost of 1 billion.
Source: Robert Chote, Carl Emmerson and Helen Simpson (eds.), IFS Green Budget 2003, Institute for Fiscal Studies (020 7291 4800)
Links: Report (pdf) | Press release (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jan
At the end of December 2002, public sector net debt outstanding was 335.6 billion, equivalent to 31.8 per cent of gross domestic product (compared to 31.5 per cent a year earlier).
Source: Public Sector Finances: December 2002, Office for National Statistics (0845 601 3034)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2003-Jan
An independent economic forecasting body said that growth and tax receipts would fall short of government predictions, leaving it facing an 11 billion public spending deficit by 2006-07, instead of a surplus of 8 billion.
Source: Ray Barrell, Simon Kirby, Rebecca Riley and Martin Weale, 'The UK economy', National Institute Economic Review 183, January 2003, National Institute for Economic and Social Research, available from Sage Publications (020 7374 0645)
Links: Summary (pdf) | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Jan