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Government spending outstripped income by nearly £300m last year, its newly published 2020 accounts reveal.
At a group level, the Government ended the year with a £272m deficit.
This was primarily driven by its response to the pandemic, with the largest costs relating to the measures put in place to support islanders and businesses, such as the Co-Funded Payroll Scheme.
Despite these increased costs, the Government’s revenue streams fared £70m better than forecast in autumn. Overall income only dropped by 1% to £1.3bn.
The balance sheet was mostly buoyed by increases in impôts (taxes on alcohol, tobacco and fuel) and GST revenue, and the housing market not facing a downturn as predicted.
In terms of general income, the accounts showed:
Spending rose in every Government department in 2020, except for Treasury, which spent £57m less than the previous year.
Health spent £31m more than in 2019, and Customer and Local Services, which managed covid-related payments, saw its spending rise by £123m (146%).
Staffing costs across the Government rose by £41m in the pandemic year to £449m.
Despite taking a hit at the beginning of the pandemic, the Government’s Rainy Day Fund saw gains of £69m, standing at a value of £968m at the end of the year. The Social Security Reserve Fund, meanwhile, saw gains of £165m – leading it to break through the £2bn mark. With these factored in, the overall deficit reduces to £24m.
Despite this positive performance, Treasurer Richard Bell urged against celebrating the investment gains, noting that they are in constant flux.
Express will be providing more analysis of the latest accounts over the coming week. Stay tuned for updates...
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