The government will not introduce new taxes to increase its revenue for the time being, but will focus more on revitalising the economy and taking care of the people, said Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
He said bringing in new taxes including the goods and services tax (GST) would not be the right measure now, as the government wants to concentrate on reviving the economy and businesses that are badly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Once the economy has recovered, we will see what is the efficient way to have taxes that could help in lifting the government's revenue,” he said during a press conference on economic recovery strategy, today.
The country recorded a lower-than-expected contraction of 5.6 percent in its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020 and the growth forecast this year is 6.5-7.5 percent, while the fiscal deficit target is at 5.8 percent.
“So, we can see our revenue will increase slightly (this year) compared to last year,” said Zafrul, adding that his ministry is studying all types of taxes that could be diversified to increase government revenue.
The economy shrank 3.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020 with the Covid-19 resurgence, bringing the full-year contraction to 5.6 percent.
On the Strategic Programme to Empower the People and the Economy (Pemerkasa), Zafrul said it would be one of the initiatives that would drive the nation's economy towards recovery.
He added that the government is concerned about empowering the people and restoring normal business operations for the sake of economic continuity.
- Bernama
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