Islamabad: Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has stated that relief can only be provided in accordance with the country’s financial capacity. “We are doing everything through borrowing, and some national expenditures have been increased as per necessity,” he said.
Speaking at a post-budget press conference in Islamabad, the Finance Minister said, “We tried to give as much relief as possible to the salaried class. Pensions and salaries need to be linked with inflation. Due to the budget deficit, everything is being financed through loans. The reality is that we can only provide relief within our financial limits. Some expenditures in the country have been increased out of necessity. We have to move forward according to our resources.”
“There Should Be a Benchmark for Salaries and Pensions”: Aurangzeb
He further stated that there should be a benchmark when it comes to salaries or pensions. “All over the world, increases are linked to inflation benchmarks. The inflation rate is still 7.5%. It is our responsibility to reduce federal expenditures.”
Finance Minister Defends High Salaries of Ministers and Parliamentarians
In response to journalists’ questions about the massive increase in salaries of ministers and parliamentarians, the Finance Minister said, “One should note when their salaries were last adjusted. The salaries of cabinet ministers were increased in 2016. If salaries had been increased annually, the recent hike wouldn’t have appeared so sudden.”
“Out of 7,000 Tariff Lines, 4,000 Reduced to Zero”: Finance Minister
Aurangzeb said that tariff reforms have been introduced in the budget. “There are a total of 7,000 tariff lines, out of which 4,000 have been reduced to zero. These reforms will boost the country’s exports.”
He added, “This year, we have collected over Rs. 400 billion in taxes through enforcement. There are only two ways: either enforce or impose taxes. We will engage both houses of Parliament for legislation on this matter.”
He also said that discussions were held with the board regarding not imposing additional taxes on the agriculture sector. “Loans will be provided to small farmers,” he added.
Journalists’ Boycott
Earlier, when Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb arrived for the post-budget press conference in Islamabad, he was accompanied by the Secretary of Finance and the Chairman of the FBR. However, journalists boycotted the press conference due to the lack of a technical briefing on the budget.
The journalists said that for the past 20 years, a technical briefing has always been provided to the media after the budget presentation, but this tradition was broken by the current government.
Later, the Finance Minister assigned relevant officials the task of persuading the journalists.