INESS: Slovakia to Run Out of Funds on November 17 and Start Running on Debt

Bratislava, November 16 (TASR) - Slovakia will start operating on debt as of November 17, as the state will have spent the taxes and levies collected from individuals and companies, the Economic and Social Studies Institute (INESS) has pointed out, adding that this means that for the next month and a half the state will have to borrow to cover all public services and pay employees' salaries, pensions and allowances. "Public-sector revenues in Slovakia reached a record level of €53.5 billion this year, up from €34.5 billion in 2018. If we adjust this increase for the impact of inflation, public revenues have risen by 12 percent in six years. This means that in real terms, the government has almost €6 billion more this year than it had in 2018," pointed out the institute. According to INESS, public spending grew even faster than revenues and will reach €61.3 billion this year. In 2018, the state spent €35.2 billion. Adjusted for inflation, this is a 26.4-percent increase in six years. According to INESS, the government is spending almost €13 billion more in real terms this year than it did in 2018. "The fact that the state will be running on debt as of November 17 is therefore not a consequence of low public revenues, but of disproportionately high public spending," stressed INESS, adding that the consolidation of public finances should therefore not be taking place on the revenues side but on the expenditures one. am/df/ko