Ex. 8. Read the dialogue, translate the Ukrainian remarks into English and act it out:
Interviewer: It’s impossible to overestimate the importance of a good, balanced budget for a country.
Economist: Повністю з вами погоджуюсь. Бюджет — це головний фінансовий інструмент країни. Це план, прогноз, оцінка доходів та витрат, як правило, на один рік. Уряд повинен дуже ретельно розподіляти свої ресурси і точно прогнозувати свої доходи.
Int.: I know that your Parliament, the legislative body of your country, is considering the draft budget now. Deputies have submitted a lot of amendments to the draft budget about restructuring debts and paying off pensions and children benefits.
Econ.: Саме так. Депутати хочуть, щоб були збільшені асигнувания на розвиток промисловості, на соціальну сферу та регіональні програми.
Int.: Now that you have mentioned regional programmes, I’d like to say that, as far as I know, the majority of your regions constantly have financial problems.
Econ.: Дійсно. Наші області знаходяться в різних кліматичних, демографічних та економічних умовах, мають різні природні багатства. В результаті вони мають різний дохід на душу населения. Однак регіони повинні більш ретельно планувати свої витрати та вживати заходів щодо збільшення доходів.
Int.: Recently you’ve reached a new agreement on how to distribute tax revenues among the refions.
Econ.: Так, хочу також зауважити, що механізм здійснення трансфертів в регіони успішно функціонують.
Int.: You’ve settled one of the basic budget issues. I’m sure your state budget will soon be approved.
Ex. 9.a) Supply the prepositions where necessary, b) Make a summary of the text and deliver it to the class.
Budgetary Policy
The transformation of the economic and political systems in Ukraine has been accompanied ... substantial reforms in the budget process, including budget preparation and classification, a new treasury system for budget execution and expenditure control, considerable autonomy of subnational governments in the formulation of their budgets.
On the whole, the budgetary policy in Ukraine is aimed ... attaining the efficient allocation of national resources, the desirable redistribution of income ... the poorer groups in society, and the maintenance of a macroeconomic environment with stable prices, full employment and equilibrium in the balance of payments.
Accurate budget evaluation is more necessary now than ever before. The economic transition has led ... drastic retrenching in public resources so there is a need to increase the efficiency with which public resources are used. Proper budget evaluation will provide critical information and feedback to policy makers ... how well budget objectives are being attained ... the implementation of the budget.
The transition ... the market economy has significantly increased the complexity of interactions of the government with the private sector thus increasing the opportunities ... misuses of funds and ... corruption. For these reasons it is important that an effective and independent ex-post audit be carried ... by at all levels of government.
Words you may need:
accompany v супроводжувати
formulation of the budget підготовка бюджету
attain v досягати
retrench v скорочувати(витрати)
feedback n зворотнійзв'язок
misuses of funds порушення у використанні коштів
ex-post audit аудит використання коштів
Ex. 10 a) Read the analysis of public spending in the UK. Replace the underlined expressions from the text using the list of word combinations
Reached the highest record level, went down, leveled out, remained at the level of, a leap, has gradually risen, recovered, soared, made up, remained steady
Public
spending in the United Kingdom has
steadily increased
from 12 percent of G
DP
in 1900 to 47 percent today.
Public Spending in the 20th century is dominated by the great exertions of the world wars. But peacetime expenditures show clear trends.
Prior to World War I, public spending sat at about 15 percent of GDP. Then, after the war it emerged at about 25 percent of GDP, and remained at about that level, except for a surge at the start of the depression in the 1930s.
After World War II, public spending consumed about 35 percent of GDP, and this level continued through the 1950s. At about 1960 expenditures began a steady rise that peaked in the early 1980s at 45 percent of GDP.
During the 1980s public spending was cut as a percent of GDP from about 45 percent down to 35 percent in 1989. But then, with the ERM sterling crisis and associated recession, it rose back to 40 percent of GDP before declining to 36 percent in 2000.
After 2000 public spending increased rapidly, with a peak of 47 percent of GDP expected in 2011 in the afermath of the financial crisis of 2008.
DISCUSSION