The Government's accounts may be in the red but its core revenue is up thanks to an increased tax take.
Crown account figures out today show the Government's operating balance for the three months to September is $545 million in deficit.
However the numbers show the Crown's tax receipts are $424 million ahead of forecast.
Treasury reports the corporate tax take was $315 million ahead of predictions and the GST take was $253 million better than expected.
However it says some of the gains are due to timing issues and are expected to reverse out over the rest of the fiscal year.
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