By: Vida Kocjan
Data from the Ministry of Finance for the first seven months of 2026 reveal a worrying fiscal trend: state‑budget revenues reached €8.9 billion (+9.4%), while expenditures climbed to €10.2 billion (+12.3%). The deficit increased to €1.321 billion – €355.5 million more than last year.
Expenditure growth far outpaced revenue growth, meaning structural pressures on the budget are deepening. This is cash‑flow methodology, since payments are executed with a delay, so the data reflect the policy of the previous (Golob) government and represent its legacy.
The largest increases came from social transfers (€1.3 billion, +10.5%), contributions to social funds (€1.4 billion, +8.9%), and public‑sector labour costs and investments (€756.5 million, +23.6%). In just the first five months, the state budget allocated €2.2 billion (+11.2%) for public‑sector labour costs, mainly due to the pay reform, promotions, and the rise in the minimum wage.
Although investments are welcome, questions remain about their efficiency and long‑term returns, especially as current expenditures also rise. Transfers to the pension fund (€1.1 billion) are increasing due to indexation and a growing number of retirees, indicating rising demographic pressures that the budget is evidently covering primarily through new borrowing.
Tax revenues did grow (€7.8 billion, +7.8%), mainly due to VAT (+12%) and corporate income tax (+20.7%), but this was not enough. Excise duties even fell. In the first half of the year, the consolidated deficit of the four public funds reached nearly €1.2 billion, and the state‑budget debt stood at €42.6 billion. During Golob’s government, this debt increased by roughly €5.3 billion.
Such expenditure growth, exceeding revenue growth, is not sustainable; fiscal space is narrowing, and the risk of further deficit deepening and debt expansion is increasing.
The data show that the previous policy prioritised short‑term spending at the expense of medium‑term stability – how much this actually contributed to the country’s well‑being is another question.
