National Assemblys Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue here on Tuesday approved the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Bill- 2009 with some amendments. Meeting of the committee, held at parliament house, was chaired by Fauzia Wahab, said a press release.
The committee took serious notice of de-emphasising the Education and Health in the budget proposals and recommended for increase of allocations for these sectors. The committee stressed the need for prioritising of health and education sectors in the budget 2009-2010 for the betterment of poor and neglected classes of the country.
On the occasion, Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance, Shaukat Tarin, assured the committee that before finalisation, the budgetary proposals for financial year 2009-1010 would be brought before the Parliamentarians and the Members of the Committee for their deliberations.
Other relevant stakeholders would also be consulted for their input in order to make the budget more useful and advantageous for the people of Pakistan, he added. The Advisor to the PM also apprised the committee about the steps taken to implement Medium Term Budget Framework (MTBF).
Shahnaz Wazir Ali, MNA expressed her concern over the capacity and capability of line Ministries/Divisions including Planning Commission for preparation of the budget in line with Medium Term Budget Framework (MTBF). The Committee showed its satisfaction over the efforts made by Ministry of Finance and Revenue regarding budget making process and taking the Committee into the confidence on the issue.
The Meeting was attended by Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Nafisa Shah, Nighat Perveen, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Khalida Mansoor, Kashmala Tariq, Abdul Rashid Gondil, Bushra Gohar, Munir Khan Orakzai, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Aftab Shaban Mirani MNAs and Shaukat Tarin, Hina Rabbani Khar, State Minister for Finance besides other senior officials.