The phrase
"spending envelope" refers to the amount of money that is available to spend or allocate for a particular purpose or timeframe. It is like a limit or boundary that helps you manage your expenses and make decisions based on the available funds.
Full definition
Total spending, including debt - servicing charges, will rise to $ 282.6 billion this year, up less than one per cent on the 2012 - 13
spending envelope of $ 280.1 billion.
Taking the next scenario — that the government will re-allocate resources within the limitations of its
current spending envelope — cutting VAT would not be the best use of funds.
A cut to the standard rate of VAT would require either a departure from the government's deficit reduction programme or a shifting of priorities within
the spending envelope that it has set itself.
• An emergency budget by George Osborne within 50 days of the general election to give details of the # 6bn of spending cuts to be introduced this year and the overall reduced «
spending envelope» for next year.
The drive to limit total welfare spending through an overall cap at least shows some imagination — although he has exempted state pensions from
this spending envelope, thereby overlooking a huge unfunded liability over the coming decades.
Once you've
spent your envelope, you know you've gone too far.