The Advisor to Prime Minister on Petroleum and Natural Resources, Dr Asim Hussain, said here on Tuesday that the decision of the apex court would be implemented and the prices of petroleum products would be reduced. Talking to media after Supreme Court decision, he said that petroleum products accounted for major taxes, even in advanced countries, and the government would face financial problems on revenue side in case of withdrawal of carbon tax.
He said that the government has already decided not to pass on the subsidy, of around Rs 130 billion annually on electricity, to the consumers. "The estimated collection from carbon tax for the current fiscal is Rs 122 billion. The total budget deficit would amount to more than Rs 350 billion this financial year," he said.
He said that it was the responsibility of Finance Ministry to arrange for finances under the developing scenario. "I do not know how this situation would be rectified as the country is already over-burdened with issues like war against terror that requires heavy expenditure."
In reply to a question, he said that carbon tax was too much burden on the people. It was approved through finance bill because people, including the apex court, had reservations over the petroleum development levy (PDL), he added. "The fixed tax was introduced only after the demand to bring transparency in the system." he said.
"Besides, petroleum is the most heavily taxed sector even in developed countries," he added. Asim said that Pakistan is basically a petroleum importing country and resources generated from taxes are used to develop this sector. He said that Pakistan is not a rich country and cannot afford to cut tax collections randomly.
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