Page 199 - Records of Bahrain (6)_Neat

Budgetary affairs 107
3.

shown on the "Revenue" 3ide as proceeds of sales of food-stuffs

to tho general public. The same figure appears on the
"Expenditure" sido for tho purchase of food supplies. Thus
it would seem that the Bahrain Government do not intend to
meet the additional expenditure necessitated by the employment
of additional staff to supervise the purchase and distribution
of food supplies by a slight increase in the sale price of
thoso supplies. In fact they have budgeted for it under
"Customs and Food Control".
This amounts to a subsidy by the Government to the people
and for purposes of assessing exactly how much assistance the
Government is giving to tho pooplo it would be better to have
the Food Control expenditure shown a3 a separate item to the
Customs expenditure.

EXPENDITURE.

1. Administration.
(a) Passport Department. The Passport Department is being run
at a loss. This is probably duo to the fact that owing to the
restrictions on foreign travel the sale and renewal of Bahrain
Government passports has greatly decreased. At the same time
the v/ork of the Passport Department has increased owing to tho
additional services now being run by tho British Overseas
Airways Corporation.
(b) Transport. fc>.26,00© has been budgeted for "Transport"
(Item (g) of paragraph 2 of the Budget). This sum is used
to koop up a Government garage which mends and services
Bahrain Government transport and municipal transport, The
heading "Transport" is misleading and it should be "Government
Garage" and bo budgeted for it under the heading P.V/.D. The

municipalities should pay for services carried out by the
Government garage and this income should be shown in the
accounts as revenue^ and if nocessary they should have their
grants increased to meet this additional expenditure.

/2.