Brazil's audit court suspends extra spending - report

Brazil's federal audit court suspended late on Friday an increase of 20 billion reais ($4.1 billion) to social assistance for elderly and disabled people, newspaper O Globo reported. Brazil's Congress had voted on Wednesday to overturn an earlier veto on spending by right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro, adding an unbudgeted 20 billion reais a year to social assistance, known locally as "BCP."

TCU, as the audit court is known, said it would only allow doubling social assistance for elderly and disabled people if the additional spending could be clawed back from elsewhere, according to O Globo. Government officials fear the extra spending will make it hard to comply with a spending ceiling fixed by law.

TCU did not immediately comment on the matter. ($1 = 4.8580 reais)