General Government debt decreased during the first three months of the year by nearly €5bn to €215.8bn, new data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows.
According to new Government finance statistics, the reduction was made almost entirely by the movement in long-term securities, with just over €4bn of Irish Government bonds redeemed between January and March.
The data also showed that general government revenue for this period stood at €28.8bn which is €1.3bn higher than the same time in 2023. However, general government expenditure also increased by €1.4bn reaching €28.3 billion.
This means the Government ran a surplus of €500m during the first three months of the year which is down from the €700m in 2023.
Statistician with the CSO Paul McElvaney said the increase in revenue was largely driven by taxes and social contributions, which increased by €1.2bn.
He said the increase in expenditure was across a range of items, with increases driven by pay, social benefits, and gross fixed capital formation.
The market value of the State’s assets in equity and investment fund shares stood at €34.5bn as of the end of March, an increase of €1.5bn.
Last week, the Government unveiled the summer economic statement which outlined a spending and tax package of €8.3bn for the budget later this year.
It will include €6.9bn in additional spending — of which €1.8bn will go towards new measures — while €1.4bn will go towards tax measures largely to adjust tax bands.
