Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Friday said that the government has decided to impose 10% super tax on major industrialists including oil, fertilizer, steel, sugar, automobile and textile.
The Prime Minister announced after chairing a meeting of his economic team in which important decisions were taken regarding the budget 2022-23.
In a televised address, the prime minister said he wanted to take the nation into confidence in the steps taken by the government to stabilize the economy.
The prime minister said the decisions taken by the government were aimed at providing relief to the people due to record inflation and reviving the economy, which had been crippled by the PTI government’s “incompetence and corruption”.
The prime minister said he was using the word “corruption” because he knew the previous government was “involved in corruption”.
The economy, which was on the verge of bankruptcy due to the delaying tactics of the PTI government, has now survived and will move out of the shadows and move towards growth.
He said that the government was taking these steps at the cost of its politics, adding that it had two options and decided to save the country.
The Prime Minister urged the affluent sections of society to come forward and share the burden.
He said this is the first budget in which the government has presented an “economic vision”, warning the nation of the difficult times ahead.
He announced a 10 per cent super tax on cement, steel, sugar, oil and gas, fertilizer, banking, textile, chemical, beverage and automobile industries, saying it was done to save the common man from taxes.
He further said that 1% tax on those earning more than Rs. 150 million, 2% tax on those earning more than Rs. 200, 3% tax on those earning more than Rs. 250 million and 4% tax on those earning more than Rs. 300 million
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif said that he has formed teams to increase tax collection from state institutions and digital means.
He said that 60% of the formal sector was paying taxes but the remaining 40% of the economy needed to be brought into the tax net.
He said the tax collected would be diverted to health, education, skills training and information technology projects.
He said that for the first time in the history of the country, a budget has been presented to provide relief to the common man, orphans, widows and the poor.
The Prime Minister hoped that hard work and reliance on God Almighty would make matters easier.
He expressed the belief that these measures would put Pakistan on the path to prosperity, development and economic stability.
He mentioned the support of the leaders of the coalition parties in standing shoulder to shoulder with the government.
He said that merit, honesty, integrity and respect for the rights of the underprivileged are the hallmarks of his government.
