THE BUDGET deficit and national debt in 2010 were marginally lower than previously believed, according to new figures from the Department of Finance.

The numbers were published yesterday, but sent to Eurostat, the EU’s statistics agency, on September 21st.

They show that the general government deficit – the widest measure of public spending and revenues – stood at €48.8 billion last year.

The last estimate, published by the department in April, put the 2010 deficit at €49.9 billion.

Approximately two-thirds of last year’s deficit was accounted for by bank rescue costs.

When expressed as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) the downward revision is larger because GDP in 2010 is now estimated to be higher than it was in April. The new figures put last year’s deficit at 31.3 per cent of GDP, down from 32.4 per cent in April.

Total public debt is now estimated to have have stood at €148 billion last year.

Estimates for 2011 budget figures have also changed, but by less than the 2010 figures.

The department believes that the 2011 deficit will fall to €15.5 billion, compared to the April estimate of €15.7 billion.

However, when expressed as a percentage of GDP, the estimated deficit is unchanged, at 10 per cent. This is because the latest official projection for GDP has been lowered slightly from the April forecast.

Total public debt is estimated to stand at €170.6 billion by the end of 2011, or 110 per cent of GDP.

In April, the department estimated that it would stand at 111 per cent of GDP.