2018/19 Budget Communication 2018_2019 BUDGET COMMUNICATION | Page 64

economic growth last year is estimated to have been 1.4 per
cent, as had been projected at the time of the last Budget. In
addition, the historical revisions suggest that the size of our
economy in current dollar terms was some $577 million
larger in 2016 than had been estimated last year, a
development that is reflected in the GDP estimate for 2017
at just over $12 billion. These revisions, of course, affect
the fiscal ratios, for the weight of both the Deficit and the
Debt relative to GDP, that are presented in this
Communication and in the supporting documentation. As
such, they are especially relevant in the context of the
Government’s fiscal policy planning in relation to the
achievement of the fiscal targets set out in the imminent
Fiscal Responsibility Bill.
The relatively modest rebound in real economic
growth in 2017 was driven primarily by buoyant activity in
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