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maltatoday, TUESDAY, 10 OCTOBER 2017 5 H o w - ever, Budg- et 2018 with its surplus will start targeting the size of the debt and this is good news for economists. A fiscal surplus will help make the debt-to-GDP ratio more sustainable, according to economics professor Joseph Falzon. "Having a low debt burden will allow the country a com- fortable cushion to withstand any shocks the economy may suffer as a result of a down- ward cycle. That is because the finance minister would have room to inject more money at that juncture," Falzon said. He noted that the low inter- est environment meant debt servicing was cheaper now but insisted there was no guaran- tee this would continue for- ever. When interest rates start rising, financing the debt will become more expensive, Fal- zon added, which is why debt reduction was important. And Scicluna may be in an envious position when com- pared to some of his eurozone peers. With Italy having a debt-to- GDP ratio upward of 100%, Falzon said the Italian finance minister had restricted room to manoeuvre. "With the Italian economy stuttering, the finance min- ister cannot just cut taxes or spend more as a stimulus be- cause it would exacerbate the debt-to-GDP ratio," Falzon said. Consolidated fund balance, € million (excluding general government deficit/surplus) Legend • Labour Nationalist Source: Central Bank, National Statistics Office Data for 2017 correct as at August * Data for 2017 correct as at August * Budget 2018 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017* John Dalli 1999-2003 Lawrence Gonzi 2004-2008 Tonio Fenech 2009-2012 Edward Scicluna 2013 - -299.6 -229.6 -228.4 -231.8 -275.3 -281.6 -207.6 -134.8 -109.1 -233.1 -297.0 -279.2 -218.6 -362.3 -263.1 -136.3 -235.8 8.9 31.5* Edward Scicluna takes a last look at his speech before setting out to deliver the 2018 Budget in Parliament yesterday. PHOTO: James Bianchi