Lahore: Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said that he will negotiate with the retailers but will not back down from bringing them into the tax net.
Speaking at the pre-budget conference organized by the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce in Lahore, Federal Finance Minister and Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb said that the government and the private sector must work together to get the country out of economic difficulties. Going forward with consultation, if we want economic stability in the country, we will have to go towards privatization.
He said that our business brothers who are outside the tax net should come to the tax net themselves, we will provide them with all kinds of facilities. In April, retailers were given the facility of voluntary registration. Also avoided, people believe that they will be unnecessarily harassed when they come into the tax net. We will give every facility to the retailers, negotiate with them but we will not shy away from bringing them into the tax net.
He said that if this country has to come out of the difficulty, then the private sector will have to come forward, eight to ten trillion cash is currently circulating in the market in Pakistan, structural changes in taxes were not made in the 24th IMF program. So then we have to go to the 25th program, if we do not make these changes even after the 24th program of the IMF, then we will have to change everything, the IMF team has come to Pakistan, this program is too much. It will be important and long, the tax net we have to increase is not just for the IMF but for Pakistan.
Giving uniform energy tariff to industries is a legitimate demand, industries cannot work here at 25 to 26 percent interest rate, many reforms have to be done on tax to GDP, energy and privatization issues.
The finance minister said that we are moving towards complete digitalisation, it will increase revenue and bring transparency, the track and trace system has failed completely and has not been implemented. He stressed that the economic indicators have improved in the last seven to eight months, the current account deficit is less than one billion dollars, the currency is stable, inflation is coming down and the stock exchange is at an all-time high.
He further said that in the matter of privatization, we are taking local investors along with foreign investors, including foreign investors as well as local investors in the privatization of PIA and Islamabad Airport. are changing the boards of electricity distribution companies to include the private sector.
