By Martin Hellicar
FINANCE Minister Christodoulos Christodoulou yesterday defended the 1998 budget against charges that it was drafted with vote-winning in mind.
“The increase in the development budget is only 12 per cent and similar increases, even up to 20 per cent, have in the past been made in both pre- election and non pre-election periods,” Christodoulou said.
Opposition parties have criticised expenditure increases in the budget, saying they are an attempt by the government to bribe the electorate before the February presidentials.
“I am certain that the opposition is wrong when it says the budget is a pre- election budget,” the minister said.
“The correct interpretation (of the budget) is that our economy, after the events of 1996 (tourism crisis created by buffer-zone violence), is in a state of recovery and needs help to continue this recovery with an increase in investments, especially with development works. This is the correct interpretation,” he said. The 1998 budget, which Christodoulou officially tabled at the House yesterday morning, provides for £261 million of expenditure on development works – an £11 million increase on the 1997 budget which brings the total development budget deficit (carried over) to £454 million.
Most of the cash is to be spent on further work on the Limassol to Paphos highway. The new motorway will suck up £20 million, while the new Dhekelia to Famagusta road is allocated £7.5 million. Another major road-building project is the Larnaca by-pass leading to the airport, which gets £2.5 million.
The Larnaca airport new air traffic control centre gets £1 million.
New central government buildings are allocated £3 million, while a million pounds is destined for improving the Curium archaeological site.
The relief fund budget for 1998 is £91 million, up £8.75 million on 1997. The relief fund deficit for 1998 is £85 million, bringing the total development fund deficit (carried forward) to £336 million.
The main budget provides for an expenditure of £1.5 billion, while state income for the year is expected to be around £1 billion.
House President Spyros Kyprianou said every effort would be made to ensure the budget was approved by the end of the year.
The budget has already been approved by the cabinet and must now pass the House committee and plenum stages
