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This release has been compiled during the COVID-19 crisis. The results contained in this release reflect some of the economic impacts of the COVID-19 situation. For further information see Background Notes.
General government deficit for 2021 of €7.1 billion (1.7% GDP), an €11.7 billion improvement on the 2020 deficit of €18.8 billion.
Improvement driven by a €15.5 billion (18.7%) increase in revenue to a record high of €98.7 billion, with a €14.1 billion increase in taxes compared to 2020.
Expenditure increased by €3.9 billion (3.8%), however the €12.5 billion expenditure on COVID-19 measures for 2021 was €2.2 billion less than in 2020.
General government gross debt (GG Debt) stood at €236.1 billion at the end of 2021 (55.4% of GDP) compared with the 2020 figure of €217.7 billion (58.4% of GDP).
| Table 1.1 General Government Finances | |||||||
| End of year | General Government | GDP | |||||
| Balance | Gross Debt | Net Debt | |||||
| €bn | % GDP | €bn | % GDP | €bn | % GDP | €bn | |
| 2016 | -2.1 | -0.8 | 200.6 | 74.3 | 176.6 | 65.4 | 270.2 |
| 2017 | -0.8 | -0.3 | 201.3 | 67.6 | 175.1 | 58.8 | 297.8 |
| 2018 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 205.8 | 63.0 | 177.0 | 54.2 | 326.6 |
| 2019 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 203.4 | 57.0 | 174.0 | 48.8 | 356.7 |
| 2020 | -18.8 | -5.0 | 217.7 | 58.4 | 185.5 | 49.8 | 372.8 |
| 2021 | -7.1 | -1.7 | 236.1 | 55.4 | 192.3 | 45.1 | 426.3 |
| X-axis label | GG gross debt (LHS) | GG net debt (LHS) | GG balance (RHS) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 74.3 | 65.4 | -0.8 |
| 2017 | 67.6 | 58.8 | -0.3 |
| 2018 | 63 | 54.2 | 0.1 |
| 2019 | 57 | 48.8 | 0.5 |
| 2020 | 58.4 | 49.8 | -5 |
| 2021 | 55.4 | 45.1 | -1.7 |
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on general government finances continued in 2021, with a deficit of €7.1bn recorded for the year. This was an improvement on the €18.8bn deficit in 2020, with the stronger performance in 2021 largely due to increased tax revenues (Table 1.1). Tax revenues increased by €14.1bn (22.9%), with strong growth across both direct (22.5%) and indirect (23.7%) taxes. Overall revenues jumped by €15.5bn (18.7%) on 2020, offsetting a more modest increase in overall expenditure of €3.9bn (3.8%), leading to the improvement in the deficit in 2021.
While overall expenditure increased, expenditure on COVID-19 measures for 2021 decreased to €12.5bn, €2.2bn less than in 2020 (Table A). This reduction is mainly due to a drop in expenditure on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment scheme, which reduced by €1.3bn to €4.0bn in 2021 as public health restrictions eased over the year.
The general government gross debt to GDP ratio was at 55.4% at the end of 2021, down from 58.4% at the end 2020. This reduction was driven entirely by the increase in GDP as the nominal debt saw an increase of €18.3 billion in the year. Over that same time frame the general government net debt to GDP ratio moved from 49.8% to 45.2% (Table 1.1).
Government accounts are compiled in the EU according to the European System of National Accounts 2010 (ESA2010) framework.
The detailed tables are aligned with the October 2022 Excessive Deficit Procedure notification. Revisions to previous years reflect updated data sources or changes in methodology - see background notes.
The main EDP notification tables for Ireland will be published on 21 October, the same day as the Eurostat release of EDP statistics. This will include details of government guarantees, PPPs and concessions and tables showing the impact on government accounts of government interventions in the financial sector.
Annual Government Finance Statistics are benchmarked to the most recent EDP notification and so may not be fully aligned with the National Income and Expenditure and related publications, such as the Institutional Sector Accounts.
The concepts and definitions used in this release are described in the background notes.
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (19 October 2022) released Government Finance Statistics - October 2022 Results - Annual Results 2016 to 2021.
Commenting on the release, Tom Fitzgerald, Statistician, said: “The deficit of €7.1 billion for 2021 is an €11.7 billion improvement compared with the deficit of €18.8 billion in 2020 and is driven by increased tax revenue.
General government revenue reached €98.7 billion in 2021, a record high, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. The main driver behind this upturn was a €14.1 billion rise in taxes, with a strong increase across most categories of taxation. Expenditure in 2021 stood at €105.8 billion which is €3.9 billion more than in 2020.
General government gross debt (the level of government borrowing) rose by €18.3 billion to €236.1 billion. However, the debt to GDP ratio continued to decline due to GDP growth in the year.”
This release includes a breakdown of the additional direct costs associated with the range of COVID-19 measures introduced by the Government since March 2020.
In relation to these measures, Tom Fitzgerald stated:
“The updated estimate of the impact of the pandemic on government expenditure shows a reduction of €2.2 billion in additional direct costs associated with the range of COVID-19 measures in 2021 compared with 2020."