Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Saturday stressed the need to create a consensus ‘charter of economy’ in line with its Vision 2018-23 to lead the country towards progress and development.

What are our targets, and where do we want to lead the country to, should be clear and this is the best time to have a Charter of Economy and a roadmap,” he told a post-budget press conference.

Dar said instead of a routine three-year medium term plan, the government in the budget document has introduced a five-year vision 2018-23. The vision, he said, aims at focusing on the second generation reforms including deepening of financial market, improving ease of doing business, enforcing property rights, improving regulatory apparatus, enforcing rule of law, creating a credible and efficient judicial system.

Dar explained that loans were taken only for development related expenses and that budgetary planning had raised the tax collection target by 14%. Responding to public reservations on budget, Dar said, “The notion that the government has imposed taxes of Rs500 billion is wrong … common man has not been taxed anew. Banks will not get from farmers a profit of more than 9.9%. Nothing has been made more expensive; shopkeepers should not do so own their own as well. Milk prices have been untouched.” The minister said that no new tax will be imposed in the budget but warned of strict action against tax defaulters.

Highlighting some of the budgetary measures, Dar said, ” One million youth will be imparted IT training; refund for textile sector will be cleared by August 14; new housing sector will be set up for overseas Pakistanis; current expenditures will not be allowed to exceed the inflation rate; more than two million small farmers will be given special concessional loans; concessions given to poultry sector in taxation are clear; on tube-wells and other machinery there will be no tax; there will be privileged rate saving schemes for Shuhada and the disabled; allocation for Higher Education Commission doubled from Rs 35 billion to Rs 70 billion and no new taxation has been imposed on common man in the budget.