Economic questions covered employment (11 items), income (22 items), expenditure (17 items), savings (7 items), debt (26 items), assets (16 items) and borrowing (5 items).
Documents from the investigation suggest that over the last three years he and his wife, Nancy, spent nearly $600,000 on airline tickets, hotels, limousines, food, a chef, a social secretary and household items — expenditures that were charged to American, but that lawyers for the university say have no apparent or documented business purpose.
The only financial reports previously released through the General Accounting Office disclosed summary information that did not include line-item expenditures.
The different levels of government complicate the budgetary process with differing spheres of influence and control over particular items of expenditure.
Many spending ministers found it easiest to protect an item of expenditure by publicising the horrors of cutting it.
His biggest single item of expenditure was £145.70 on headed paper followed by a £129 train journey from London to Macclesfield to visit his Tatton constituency and about £25 on local newspapers.
According to Eric Pickles, secretary of state for communities and local government, the taxpayer will play an active role, with the right to inspect every item of expenditure over £500 in local councils and to assess the level of public sector salaries and job descriptions.
Its development since 1911, when it was transferred to the Commonwealth of Australia from South Australia, has been a major item of expenditure in terms of works, services, and inducements to producers to accept the risks of an uncertain physical and economic environment.
One problem is that the costs of any item of expenditure are thinly distributed across a large population, which thus has little reason to oppose them, whereas the benefits are often concentrated in a small population, which thus clamours for them.
