Mr Selfe pointed out that that the Secretary General had remarked earlier that the budget was the most important document relating to the policy of the IPU and that the consolidated budget gave not only the figures of expected revenue and expenditure, but also spelt out the issues and challenges for each of the IPU's major activities for the forthcoming year. It was therefore disappointing to note that in the consolidated budget for 2010, the issues and challenges for 2010 were, in most cases, identical to the issues and challenges for 2009. The view was expressed that there should surely be new issues and new challenges that were different from last year's.