Total general government expenditure is everything the state spends — central government, regional and local government, and social-security funds combined. It is shown as a percentage of GDP so countries of different sizes can be compared.
Why a share of GDP
Expressing spending against the size of the economy answers the real question: how big is the state relative to everything the country produces? In most EU members this sits around or above 45-50% of GDP, high by global standards.
What to watch
Spending that rises faster than revenue produces deficits and, over time, debt.
The composition matters as much as the level — see the breakdown by function.
Set spending against real growth to ask whether a larger state is buying a faster economy.
Source: Eurostat (general government, sector S13), annual.