Govt ‘hiding deficit facts’

Press, 22 October 1981, Page 6

Govt ‘hiding deficit facts’

' PA Wellington The Government was ? concealing details of its 198182 spending and the deficit at the end of the year would be ‘ well above an all-time record, said the Leader of the. . Opposition (Mr Rowling) during the debate on the SuppleImentary Estimates in Parliament last evening. Critical items were missing in the supplementary estimates, including the Public Service’s pay increase, which was due on November 10 and which was expected to be about 10 per cent. The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) said, “If an item is that ascertained or finalised it is not in (the Supplementary Estimates).” Mr- Rowling said that the leading question was, “Will the real deficit stand up?” ■ He said that the budget deficit had been shown as being $2090 million but with the Supplementary Estimates, the figure was now $2146 million, which was “easily an all-time record.”

He asked Mr Muldoon if the Supplementary Estimates, as presented to the House had been prepared exactly in the way that the Treasury had advised “or in fact if some of the decisions, particularly with regard to omissions, have been made as a deliberate political decision on the part of the Government.”

, It seenfed that the Supple- ‘ menfary Estimates were designed to conceal as much, or even more,' than they revealed.

Mr Rowling said, “they would suggest they are part of a Government’s totally cynical attempt to buy the electorate’s vote with the electorate’s own money.

“It’s significant that in last year’s Supplementary Estimates there was an allowance for the increase in the public sector. This year there is not.

“There are two possibilities: the public sector is not going to be paid at all until April (or) the other one, which seems much more likely, is that the Government, by not putting anything in the Supplementary Estimates, has covered up yet another $2OO million-odd of money that ought to be added to the present incredible high deficit.” Mr Rowling said that the rated superannuation was due to be increased early in 1982 but there was no indication of that having been “taken aboard.” Mr Muldoon said that he had told the Treasury he wanted the estimates to be prepared strictly in accordance with the rules.