Cabinet Approves 2012 State Budget Draft Law as Miqati Says STL Funding Complete

Cabinet approved on Wednesday the 2012 state budget draft law, referring it to parliament, and with Prime Minister Najib Miqati announcing that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon had been funded.

He revealed: “Lebanon paid its share of the funding this morning outside of the state budget.”

“The funding was made the same way as last year and it was not necessarily done through banks,” he explained without giving further details.

“Lebanon has fulfilled its pledge to fund the tribunal,” Miqati said.

On the draft law, LBC television said that several “contentious” issues were removed from the draft law.

The state budget draft law was approved despite the absence of Minister of State Salim Karam who criticized the government for failing to discuss development projects in Ehden.

He walked out of the session, telling reporters that he would boycott the next meeting on the budget and would not approve it.

According to financial experts, the legislature is not likely to approve it before the end of the year, which is the date of approval for the 2013 budget.

If adopted, Lebanon would have the first budget since 2005.

Authorities were so far covering the expenses of state institutions through the approval of extra-budgetary spending bills.

During its session at Baabda palace under President Michel Suleiman on Tuesday, the government studied around 30 out of the 105 articles of the budget which would stand at LL21 trillion, while the deficit would reach LL5.6 trillion.

The budget does not include any new taxes, but it may impose fees on certain items such as tobacco, cigarettes, alcoholic beverages and luxury cars that cost more than $35,000 in the countries of origin.

In 2011, Miqati announced that the funding of the tribunal was made from the prime minister's office's budget, which does not need cabinet approval.

Lebanon is obligated to pay 49 percent of the tribunal budget, which amounts to around $33 million.