Hanoi (VNA) – Lawmakers heard the Government’s reportson State budget balance and State budget balance audit in 2016 in the afternoonof May 21, the first day of the fifth session of the National Assembly (NA).
The report on State budget balance was delivered by Ministerof Finance Dinh Tien Dung who said synchronous solutions to restore the economyand efforts made by the entire political system have exerted impacts on thecollection and spending of the State budget in 2016.
The State coffer was used suitably, prioritisingagriculture, rural and mountainous and Central Highland areas, povertyreduction, social welfare and combats against natural disasters and diseases,he said.
Besides, the capital was also spent on national defence andsecurity, macro-economic stability and national finance security protection,the minister said.
He stressed the close management of the State budgetspending in line with the State Budget Law and the legislature’s resolution,adding that ministries and agencies at both central and grassroots levelsemployed various solutions to manage the State budget estimates effectively.
According to the report, the total State budget collectionin 2016 hit over 1.4 quadrillion VND (61.9 billion USD) while spending was morethan 1.57 quadrillion VND (69.2 billion USD).
The report on the State budget balance audit pointed outshortcomings in making and implementing budget estimates of some ministries,agencies and locality, along with bottlenecks in tax payment.
Of note, up to 859 billion VND (37.7 million USD) from the Statebudget was used to pay for abundant personnel resources.
A report of the NA’s Finance-Budget Committee also revealedunsustainable budget collection, which, it said was mainly contributed by thenatural resources and land sectors. There were 12 localities failed to completetheir budget collection targets due to sluggish policy reform andoverestimates.
Against the background, the committee suggested the NA implementsolutions to deal with tax losses and debts, while identifying responsibilityof ministries, agencies and localities for the above-said problems.
The same day, the legislators also discussed proposals ofthe draft Law on Cultivation and the draft Law on Amnesty (amended).-VNA