Cash flows

The 2005-06 underlying cash surplus was $15.8 billion, $1.0 billion higher than estimated at the 2006-07 Budget. The higher than anticipated outcome was the result of lower cash payments of $1.5 billion, partially offset by lower cash receipts of $0.6 billion.

Total Australian Government general government sector receipts of $221.8 billion were $566 million lower than estimated at the 2006-07 Budget. The cash receipts outcome largely reflects lower than expected company tax receipts of $840 million.

Table 5: Australian Government general government sector receipts

1. Includes Medicare levy receipts of $6,525 million in 2005-06.

Total Australian Government general government sector cash payments were $206.0 billion in 2005-06, $1.5 billion lower than estimated at the 2006-07 Budget.

The difference between the lower cash payments of $1.5 billion and the $249 million increase in accrual expenses and net capital investment primarily reflects the impact of increases in expenses discussed earlier in this part that do not affect cash payments, including:

• $500 million for the grant to the Murray-Darling Basin Commission due to the determination by the Australian National Audit Office that the grant was required to be expensed in 2005-06 rather than over five years beginning in 2006-07;
• $388 million due to the expensing of the acquisition of certain specialist military equipment in accordance with the Government Finance Statistics framework rather than the previous classification as an asset; and
• $169 million for the Superannuation Co-contribution programme due mainly to the adoption of an improved methodology for estimating the impact on accrued expenses for people who have not yet lodged their claims.

Table 6: Summary of Australian Government general government sector cash flows^(a)

1. Cash flows are derived from the accrual GFS framework excluding GST.
2. Equivalent to cash receipts from the sale of non-financial assets in the GFS cash flow statement.
3. Equivalent to cash payments for purchases of new and second-hand non-financial assets in the GFS cash flow statement.
4. The acquisition of assets under finance leases decreases the underlying cash balance. The disposal of assets previously held under finance leases increases the underlying cash balance.
5. Excludes Future Fund earnings.
6. Under the cash budgeting framework, these cash flows were referred to as net advances.