An Exchequer deficit of €8,919 million was recorded to end-November 2020. This compares to a surplus of €3,355 million in the same period last year. The €12,275 million year-on-year deterioration in the Exchequer balance is primarily driven by increases in voted expenditure. Cumulative tax receipts of €51,130 million at the end of the period were down by 6.9 per cent or €3,761 million on last year. Receipts-to-date have benefitted from a strong performance in January and February as well as solid income and corporate tax receipts, which have compensated — to an extent — for sharp declines in other tax heads, notably VAT and excise receipts.