Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has said that he will reveal the details for the government’s implementation of targeted subsidies during the tabling of Budget 2024 next month.

Datuk Seri Anwar also reassured that any subsidy rationalisation that are set to be proposed will not add to the burden of the middle- and lower-income groups. “This is because any adjustment that burdens them will certainly increase the burden already borne by the poor,” he said.

Additionally, Datuk Seri Anwar – who is also the Finance Minister – noted that he will also provide key information on taxation issues and ways to increase Malaysia’s national income during Budget 2024. These are crucial in enabling the government to spend according to its capacity, he said.

The prime minister’s comment came following an earlier remark made by Economic Affairs Minister, Rafizi Ramli back in June 2023, which highlighted the government’s ongoing efforts in developing an appropriate mechanism for targeted subsidies. At that time, Rafizi had said that the government will soon rely on net disposable household income as the basis to provide targeted subsidies, as opposed to the current income-based approach.

Unlike the income-based approach – which is more static in nature and is based solely on household income – the new approach will take into account factors like monthly financial commitments as well. The adoption of the net disposable household approach may also see the phasing out of the current B40 and M40 categorisations by next year.

Budget 2024 is set to be tabled on 13 October 2023.

(Source: Malay Mail)

• TAGS:
• Budget 2024
• Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim
• Government Subsidies
• Net Disposable Household Income
• Targeted Subsidies
• Targeted Subsidy Mechanism