31.   He said the government was going to make major public sector reforms aimed at reducing the public domestic debt and budget deficit and improving revenue collection.

32.   He said the problem has been worsened by a shortfall in government revenue collection this year.

33.   He urged the agency to get rid of the red tape and enhance staff professionalism to improve methods of revenue collection.

34.   He stressed that no additional laws were needed to increase revenue collection, pointing only to the need for improvement of administrative procedures.

35.   He said he expected the increased revenues to come from continued growth in the tourism and financial services sectors, improved revenue collection and increased private sector growth.

36.   In addition, tax brackets which are reset for inflation annually would rise more slowly, causing more people to pay higher tax rates and boosting revenue collections.

37.   In past years, the government has slashed spending and run up debts when revenue collections fell too low to cover what was promised in the budget.

38.   In this respect, a reasonable amount of revenue collection for the States will have to be worked out.

39.   It blamed poor revenue collection and a slump in financial markets.

40.   It said the Tax Service also wants to tighten control over licensing distilleries, limit imports and boost minimum vodka prices to improve revenue collections.