Some of those who argue for higher public spending claim that Ireland's share of spending relative to national income is much lower than that of other EU countries. The implication is that our level of public service provision is therefore correspondingly lower. This suggestion is based on cross-country comparisons which indicate, for example, that general Government spending in Ireland is budgeted at about 35.5% of GDP for 2002 compared with an EU average of 47%. However, this comparison is misleading.