No finance minister or government can operate without exploring options to collect a reasonable amount of revenue.
Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad stated in an interview on The Lens@177 in Suva this week that the $3 billion revenue projection in the national budget was realistic because the Government was not about “political gimmicks.”
“We’re not about populist policies,” he said.
“We have undertaken actions that may seem unexciting, not flashy, but they are in the long-term interests of the people. Therefore, revenue collection is crucial.
“Just like families, if you keep borrowing and don’t have an income source, you can borrow up to a certain point, but eventually, you’ll have to repay it. Similarly, a country operates in the same way.
“And we’re not overtaxing the economy.”
Prof Prasad mentioned there were many incentives for investors and tax forgiveness in the form of good incentives.
“Our calculations show that nearly a billion dollars worth of tax incentives are provided to various sectors of the economy.”
This, he noted, included the tourism sector, agriculture, and supporting indigenous businesses.
Prof Prasad added that the budget included additional measures to support and promote indigenous businesses in the country.
“It’s a very balanced, well-thought-out logical budget in the context of what we have in the economy at the moment.”