IMF loan not needed if Saudi Arabia helps: Tarin

[Naveed Yaseen]

ISLAMABAD (November 04 2008): Prime Minister's Adviser on Finance Shaukat Tareen on Monday said that all sectors of economy should be brought into the tax net for fair play and promotion of tax culture in the country. In an interview to VOA, he admitted that the government has to make difficult political decisions for improving taxation system in the country.

Replying to a query, he said all issues have been resolved with the IMF technical team and the next phase of the talks will focus the payment. He said first time in the history of the country agriculture sector would be brought under tax net.

Tareen said he has full support from President Zardari for improving the tax system adding that the tax rate will be enhanced to bring it to 15 percent of the gross national income. He said borrowing loans from the IMF is one of our last options to cope with the current economic crisis. Pakistan has presented the plan to the IMF, which sent a team to Dubai to analyse the plan.

Now negotiations with it have concluded successfully, he remarked. The IMF will take our plan to its board by November 15, he added. "We are going to Saudi Arabia on November 4 and 5 so we will not require the IMF support in case we succeed in getting money from Saudi Arabia. But I think that the IMF has accepted our conditions so we will try to take it from Friends of Pakistan," he said.

"We want to present a comprehensive solution to the current economics issue. The IMF has not given its own plan or co-ordination and we are carrying on talks on our own terms." He alleged that the previous government did not raise prices with the fear that it would make the then ruling party unpopular during the election year."

If there is any proposal from the stock exchanges relating to the reduction in capital value tax (CVT), then this could be reviewed in the next budget, he added. He said if the proposal for slashing the CVT was sent, then it could be seriously considered but only in the next budget.

http://www.brecorder.com/index.php?id=830592