<p><h3>Headline comparisons</h3><ul> </p><p><li><em class="bold">Central government current receipts</em> in November were 5.7% higher than the same month last year. Last week's Pre-Budget Report forecast for 2003-04 implies an increase over last year's levels of 5.8% for the year as a whole and of 7.1% for the period from November 2003 to March 2004. The latest figures show an increase over last year's levels of 5.0% for the year to date. </p><p> </p><p><li><em class="bold">Central government current spending</em> in November was 1.8% lower than the same month last year. Last week's Pre-Budget Report forecast for 2003-04 implies an increase of 8.3% over last year's levels for the year as a whole and of 6.2% for the period from November 2003 to March 2004. The latest figures show an increase over last year's levels of 8.3% for the year to date. </p><p> </p><p><li><em class="bold">Public sector next investment</em> in November was 129.0% higher than the same month last year. Last week's Pre-Budget Report forecast for 2003-04 implies an increase of 67.9% for the year as a whole and an increase of 57.1% for the period from November 2003 to March 2004. The latest figures show an increase over last year's levels of 92.0% for the year to date. </p><p></ul></p>