Definition

The net borrowing or net lending of the general government is the balancing item of the non-financial account for this sector (according to the 1993 System of National Accounts). It is also equal to the difference between total revenue and total expenditure, including capital expenditure. The general government sector consists mainly of central, state and local government units together with social security funds controlled by those units. The main revenue of general government consists of taxes, social contributions, dividends and other property income. The main expenditure items consist of the compensation of civil servants, social benefits, interest on the public debt, subsidies and gross fixed capital formation. A negative figure indicates a deficit.

The data shown here are on a national accounts basis. These may differ from the numbers reported to the European Commission under the excessive deficit procedure (EDP) for some EU countries and for some years.

For more statistics on economic, environmental and social issues visit online the OECD Factbook 2010.