Finance Minister Syed Naveed Qamar has said subsidies on oil and energy would not be taken back in one go, rather these would be withdrawn in phases to minimise the impact on the masses.
Winding up general debate on the budget in the National Assembly on Thursday, the minister while responding to issues raised during the debate, said they were looking into the margin of Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) and dealers apart from deemed duty on petroleum products. He said the government would take into confidence all the stakeholders before taking decision in a manner to protect consumers and industry.
The Minister, who vehemently criticised the economic policies of the previous government, said they were shifting away from economy that protected banks and real estate.
"Agriculture is a strong and resilient baseline that provides for sustainable economic growth in Pakistan with industrial base on it," he said, and added that their government had offered incentives for the development of this sector. The crop insurance would be compulsory for crop loans to protect not only the farmers, but also the banks, he said.
All agricultural inputs would be zero-rated, and there would be no customs duty or sales tax on pesticides or raw material, used in local production of fertiliser.
Import of all tractors and other agriculture equipment would remain tax-free, he added. About subsidy on wheat, he said it was never meant for Pakistani farmers. Because of being for imported wheat, it in fact benefited the foreign countries'' farmers. Thus it was decided to subsidise the Pakistan farmers and to reduce their cost of production, he said, and added that subsidy on DAP fertiliser was increased from Rs 470 to Rs 1,000 per bag and sale tax on commodity was removed.
He said that under the directives of the Prime Minister, physical harassment as well as land auctioning of small farmers under the process of loan recovery was stopped. The House Building Finance Corporation (HBFC) had also been directed not to auction houses of small loanees, he added.
About Benazir Income Support Programme, the minister said there would be no political interference in either selection of families or disbursement. He said that research and development (R&D) for textile sector would remain intact, but would be given to those who really needed support for growth of exports.
About tax on mobile phones, he said the country imported mobile phones worth 1.1 billion dollars annually and it was decided that incentives should be given for setting up local plants for their production. He said five bills had been withdrawn from the Finance Bill - two are being examined to ascertain whether they come in the ambit of it or not. But, he said he would let the house know on Monday the accurate figures of bills to be withdrawn.
Power sector would be the top priority of the government, he said, while assuring gas to plants, he added. He said the government was also considering transferring funds of various ministries and departments from commercial banks to the State Bank of Pakistan, but would examine each and every case separately.
He said by next year, expenditure side of the budget would be presented in the National Assembly in March to enable parliamentary committees, t have detailed debate on it before the details of expenditure could be presented to the Parliament in June.
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