Last Monday, the Minister of Finance presented the 2015 Budget to the National Assembly in keeping with the requirements of Article 219 (3) of the Constitution. That sub-article provides for the Minister to authorise withdrawals from the Consolidated Fund to meet the cost of essential services of the Government for up to three months after the first sitting of the Assembly under the 11th Parliament. A statement of expenditure so authorised must be laid in the Assembly, and when it is approved, the expenditure is to be included under the appropriate heads in the Appropriation Bill.
It is therefore a precondition for the Minister to submit to the Assembly a statement of expenditure for the period 10 June to 31 August 2015 for its approval before the presentation of the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for 2015. This requirement might have
