The highly contentious Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill will soon be on its way to be tabled at the Dewan Rakyat, as early as its first sitting this year on March 10.
The bill would need to be tabled this year for the law it proposes to be ready for implementation by April 1 next year as planned, said Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan.
He said the draft of the bill was being reviewed bu the Attorney-General’s Chambers.
On a related subject, Ahmad said a special RM300 aid package would be announced later this year under the Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia (BR1M) for households earning less than RM4,000 a month, to provide relief from the GST’s implementation.
The current BR1M aid package is valued at RM700. If this base sum is maintained, the total handout for next year would be RM1000, he said.
Buring last year’s Budget 2014 announcement, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the GST would impose a 6% tax on selected goods and services, replacing the current 10% sales and 5% service taxes.
There has been a public outcry against the proposed GST, with NGOs and student groups organizing #TURUN rallies to protest its implementation and the subsidy cuts that have hurt Malaysians’ pockets since late last year. The opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition has also launched an Anti-GST Campaign.
Source: The Star Online
