Crushing tax target
Listen to article
The IMF's latest tax policy suggestions for Islamabad in relation to the upcoming annual budget may cause further consternation, as salaried individuals can expect an even greater share of the tax burden to be placed on their shoulders.
At the core of the recent discussions between the government and the IMF has been the anticipated Rs14.307 trillion tax target, where the Washington-based lender is emphasising additional revenue measures and a rebalancing of fiscal resources.
The Fund has also pushed back against the government's desire to reduce the tax burden on the salaried class, effectively accusing the government of fudging the numbers to push through a reduction after statistics showed an astounding increase of over 50% in income tax recovered from salaried individuals this year. Despite this, the IMF is averse to even raising the exempted income level, let alone revising tax slabs.
At the same time, the government could do better than rely on the much-criticised Laffer Curve model to justify its tax policy. On that note, the competence of tax policymakers, up to and including members of the federal cabinet, can be gauged by the price of packaged milk.
Most countries exempt milk entirely or charge a lowered rate, usually without any variance based on packaged or raw milk. In our malnutrition-riddled country, packaged milk has an 18% tax rate, while raw milk is tax-free. Many FBR officials reportedly see nothing wrong with this situation. Meanwhile, poor urban dwellers must find a local cow if they want to get milk at an affordable price.
More common ground could be found, however, on privatisation-related issues. While sales of state assets are only one-time income, ridding the exchequer of bleeding assets brings long-term savings that help balance the budget.
The government could use these savings as justification for reducing some of the income tax burden or increasing some public spending, especially since there is likely to be a bump in the defence budget due to the simmering threat of conflict with India.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
7 hours ago
- Express Tribune
US Supreme Court grants DOGE access to sensitive social security data
The U.S. Supreme Court building is seen the morning before justices are expected to issue opinions in pending cases, in Washington, U.S., June 14, 2024. Photo:REUTERS Listen to article The US Supreme Court granted on Friday the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a key player in President Donald Trump's drive to slash the federal workforce, broad access to personal information on millions of Americans in Social Security Administration data systems while a legal challenge plays out. On the request of the Justice Department, the judiciary had put on hold Maryland-based US District Judge Ellen Hollander's order that had largely blocked DOGE's access to "personally identifiable information" in data such as medical and financial records while litigation proceeds in a lower court. Hollander found that allowing DOGE unfettered access likely would violate a federal privacy law. The top court's brief, unsigned order did not provide a rationale for siding with DOGE. BREAKING: The Supreme Court grants DOGE affiliates access to Social Security Administration records. Justices Kagan, Sotomayor, and Jackson would deny the request. — SCOTUSblog (@SCOTUSblog) June 6, 2025 The court has a 6-3 conservative majority. Its three liberal justices dissented from the order. Liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, in a dissent that was joined by fellow liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor, criticized the court's majority for granting DOGE "unfettered data access" despite the administration's "failure to show any need or any interest in complying with existing privacy safeguards." In a separate order on Friday, the Supreme Court extended its block on judicial orders requiring DOGE to turn over records to a government watchdog group that sought details on the entity established by US President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk. DOGE swept through federal agencies as part of the Republican president's effort, spearheaded by Musk, to eliminate federal jobs, downsize and reshape the US government and root out what they see as wasteful spending. Musk formally ended his government work on May 30. Two labor unions and an advocacy group filed suits to prevent DOGE from accessing sensitive data at the Social Security Administration (SSA), including social security numbers, bank account data, tax information, earnings history and immigration records. The agency is a major provider of government benefits, sending checks each month to more than 70 million recipients including retirees and disabled Americans. Democracy Forward, a liberal legal group that represented the plaintiffs, said Friday's order would put millions of Americans' data at risk. "Elon Musk may have left Washington DC, but his impact continues to harm millions of people," the group said in a statement. "We will continue to use every legal tool at our disposal to keep unelected bureaucrats from misusing the public's most sensitive data as this case moves forward." In their lawsuit, the plaintiffs argued that SSA had been "ransacked" and that DOGE members had been installed without proper vetting or training. They demanded access to some of the agency's most sensitive data systems. Hollander in an April 17 ruling found that DOGE had failed to explain why its stated mission required "unprecedented, unfettered access to virtually SSA's entire data systems". "For some 90 years, SSA has been guided by the foundational principle of an expectation of privacy with respect to its records," Hollander wrote. "This case exposes a wide fissure in the foundation." Hollander issued a preliminary injunction that prohibited DOGE staffers and anyone working with them from accessing data containing personal information, with only narrow exceptions. The judge's ruling did allow DOGE affiliates to access data that had been stripped of private information as long as those seeking access had gone through the proper training and passed background checks. Hollander also ordered DOGE affiliates to "disgorge and delete" any personal information already in their possession. The Richmond, Virginia-based 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals in a 9-6 vote declined on April 30 to pause Hollander's block on DOGE's unlimited access to Social Security Administration records. Justice department lawyers in their Supreme Court filing characterized Hollander's order as judicial overreach. "The district court is forcing the executive branch to stop employees charged with modernizing government information systems from accessing the data in those systems because, in the court's judgment, those employees do not 'need' such access," they wrote. The six dissenting judges wrote that the case should have been treated the same as one in which 4th Circuit panel ruled 2-1 to allow DOGE to access data at the US Treasury and Education Departments and the Office of Personnel Management. In a concurring opinion, seven judges who ruled against DOGE wrote that the case involving Social Security data was "substantially stronger" with "vastly greater stakes," citing "detailed and profoundly sensitive Social Security records," such as family court and school records of children, mental health treatment records and credit card information.
Business Recorder
9 hours ago
- Business Recorder
North Korea hit by major internet outage, likely due to internal cause
SEOUL: North Korea's internet was hit by a major outage that lasted several hours on Saturday, knocking off connection to government web sites and official news services online and severing the reclusive country from cyberspace. It was not clear what caused the outage but it may have been internal rather than a cyberattack, as connections via China and Russia were affected, said researchers who monitor North Korea's internet and technology infrastructure. North Korea's main official news services, its Foreign Ministry, and the Air Koryo national airline were among websites inaccessible on Saturday, before they started coming back slowly around midday according to checks by Reuters. North Korea's entire internet infrastructure was not showing up on systems that can monitor internet activities, and email services were also affected, Junade Ali, a U.K.-based researcher who monitors the North Korean internet, said earlier. 'Hard to say if this is intentional or accidental - but seems like this is internal rather than an attack.' North Korea says military ties with Russia to ensure 'peace' Officials at South Korea's cyber terror response centre, a police division that monitors North Korea's cyber activities, could not be reached for comment. Martyn Williams, who specializes in North Korea's technology and infrastructure at the Washington-based Stimson Center, also said the cause appeared to be internal as the Chinese and Russian connections were not working. North Korea has one of the world's most strictly controlled internet systems, including access to any form of online communication. The general public has access only to an intranet set up by the government and that is not connected to the wider global network. An elite few in the government and leadership are allowed open internet access, and government and news websites often serve up propaganda for outside audiences. North Korea has in previous years experienced large internet outages suspected as being caused by cyberattacks. The country operates elite teams of hackers, including a group known as Lazarus run by the government intelligence apparatus, that are blamed for attacks against foreign institutions and companies and more recently for theft and the laundering of cryptocurrencies. North Korea denies involvement in hacking, crypto thefts and other cybercrime.
Express Tribune
18 hours ago
- Express Tribune
US fund commits $10m to Pakistani startups
Listen to article A US tech fund has committed $10 million to two Pakistani IT entrepreneurs and IT experts have praised this move as it looks promising for the future. Tech analyst and expert Muhammad Yasir said that Pakistani IT firms are penetrating different traditional and non-traditional markets with their innovative products and services, which is a positive sign. Attracting investments from US-based companies will not only boost business growth and expansion of Pakistani IT companies but it will also improve the image of the country in the relevant sector, opening doors for other companies in high-end markets such as the US and EU. Pakistani IT companies need to reach more similar investors and venture capitalists in major traditional markets like the US, EU and non-traditional markets like the UAE and Saudi Arabia to expedite the overall growth of Pakistani IT exports and expansion. JR Dallas Tech Fund, the premier private investment arm of JR Dallas Wealth Management, announced a groundbreaking $10 million commitment to globally recognised technology leaders Mehwish Salman Ali and Malik Mudassir to spearhead an exclusive US-focused startup investment initiative. Under this landmark agreement, Mehwish Salman Ali and Malik Mudassir will receive $10 million in dedicated capital to identify, evaluate, and invest in high-potential startups planning to scale operations in the US. The duo will serve as lead investment partners with full authority to deploy capital across artificial intelligence, cloud computing, digital health, and frontier technology ventures. "We are entrusting $10 million to two of the most visionary technology leaders of our generation," said Jehangir A Raja, Managing Partner at JR Dallas Tech Fund. "Mehwish and Malik represent the perfect combination of technical expertise, entrepreneurial success, and strategic vision needed to identify the next generation of game-changing startups ready to conquer the American market." This $10 million commitment specifically targets startups with proven capabilities seeking to establish or expand operations within the US, creating a direct pathway for international innovation to contribute to American economic growth. The investment is likely to generate positive economic impacts as these companies are expected to generate 300-500 high-skilled technology positions within 24 months. Portfolio companies are projected to contribute $50-100 million in US economic activity within three years and accelerate breakthrough technologies in AI, healthcare, and cloud infrastructure. Mehwish Salman Ali brings unparalleled expertise as Founder & CEO of Data Vault, Pakistan's first solar-powered and quantum-encrypted AI data centre, Co-Founder of Zahanat AI, the country's first indigenous GPT model, and COO of AppsGenii Technologies. Malik Mudassir commands respect as Founder & CEO of AppsGenii Technologies, operating across the US, UK, and Pakistan, and Co-Founder of multiple successful ventures including GharPar, BoxesGen, and Dental Connect. The $10 million fund operates under a rigorous investment framework designed to maximise both financial returns and economic impact: "Receiving this $10 million commitment from JR Dallas Tech Fund represents more than capital; it's a mandate to bridge the gap between global innovation and American market opportunity," said Mehwish Salman Ali. "We are committed to identifying startups that not only promise exceptional returns but also contribute meaningfully to US technological leadership." Malik Mudassir added, "This $10 million investment enables us to support visionary entrepreneurs who understand that scaling in America requires more than great technology it demands deep market insight, operational excellence, and strategic partnership. We're here to provide all three."
