Commentary on Articles
Article 1: Title and commencement:Article 2: InterpretationArticle 3: Issue of Sum out of the Consolidated Fund for year ending 31st March 2004 and appropriation of that sum.
Paragraph (1) authorises the issue out of the Consolidated Fund of Northern Ireland of the revised sum of £9,579,408,000 for 2003-2004.
Paragraph (2) appropriates that sum for the purposes specified in Schedule 1.
Paragraph (3) provides authority for cash limits set by the Budget (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 and the Budget (No. 2) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 to be superseded by the amounts specified in column 2 of Schedule 1 of the Budget (Northern Ireland) Order 2004.
Article 4: Use of resources (other than accruing resources) in year ending 31st March 2004.
This article authorises the use of resources amounting to £12,956,491,000 for 2003-2004, for the purposes specified in column 1 of Schedule 2.
Paragraph (4) provides authority for the resources limits set by the Budget (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 and the Budget (No. 2) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 to be superseded by the amounts specified in column 2 of Schedule 2 of the Budget (Northern Ireland) Order 2004.
Article 5: Revised limits on use of certain accruing resources in year ending 31st March 2004
Paragraph (1) This article sets relevant limits on the total amount of accruing resources, including both operating and non-operating accruing resources that may be directed to be used for certain specified purposes as shown separately in the Estimates for 2003-04.
Paragraph (2) provides authority for the direction of accruing resources as specified in column 3 of Schedule 2 for the purposes specified in the corresponding entries in column 1 of that schedule.
Paragraph (3) provides authority for the accruing resources limits set by the Budget (No. 2) (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 to be superseded by the amounts specified in column 3 of Schedule 2 of the Budget (Northern Ireland) Order 2004.
Article 6: Issue of sum out of the Consolidated Fund for year ending 31st March 2005 and appropriation of that sum.
Paragraph (1) authorises the issue out of the Consolidated Fund of Northern Ireland of the sum of £4,362,013,000 for 2004-05.
Paragraph (2) appropriates that sum for the purposes specified in Schedule 3.
Article 7: Power of the Department of Finance and Personnel to borrow
This article authorises the temporary borrowing by the Department of Finance and Personnel of approximately half the sum covered by Article 6 (1). This is a normal safeguard against the possibility of a temporary deficiency arising in the Northern Ireland Consolidated Fund.
Article 8: Use of resources (other than accruing resources) for year ending 31st March 2005.
This article authorises the use of resources amounting to £5,157,494,000 for 2004-2005, for the purposes specified in column 1 of Schedule 4.
