PM Kakar orders constitution of committee for FBR revamp

ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister (PM) Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Tuesday ordered the constitution of an inter-ministerial committee for the restructuring of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), ARY News reported.  

The directives were issued during a meeting of federal cabinet, which met here under the chairmanship of interim premier Anwaarul Haq Kakar, read a statement issued by Prime Minister Office (PMO).

The meeting discussed in detail the recommendation with respect to the digitisation and restructuring of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

After a thorough discussion of the proposals made in light of the opinions of the cabinet members regarding the restructuring and digitization of the FBR, the prime minister directed to establish of an inter-ministerial committee under the supervision of the caretaker finance minister Dr Shamshad Akhtar.

Other members of the committee will include federal ministers for privatisation, foreign affairs, commerce, energy, law and justice and information technology.

The committee will present its recommendations regarding these proposals in the next meeting of the federal cabinet.

Read More: Senate Committee objects to restructuring of FBR

Earlier, it was reported that the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) had approved the Finance Ministry summary regarding the restructuring of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

Sources said that after the restructuring of FBR, the tax policy will be included in the jurisdiction of the finance ministry. The eight-member board comprising secretaries from the finance ministry, commerce ministry and foreign ministry will overview the affairs of FBR.

The cabinet appreciated the efforts of Finance Minister Dr. Shamshad Akhtar in increasing the tax revenue and improving the tax-GDP ratio. The cabinet also admired the finance minister for presenting detailed proposals regarding the administrative structure of the FBR.

The prime minister and all members of the cabinet unanimously supported the proposals regarding the FBR reforms and reiterated that the caretaker government should play its due role in concluding the FBR reform agenda.

On the recommendation of the finance ministry, the federal cabinet approved the extension of the tenure of Tahir Hussain Qureshi as the President of SME Bank for three months or till the formal closure of the institution.

The cabinet, On the recommendation of the Ministry of National Health, appointed Principal Shifa College of Dentistry, Shifa-e-Milat University Islamabad Prof. Dr. Anwar Ali Shah as the representative of medical colleges in the registration board of Islamabad Health Regulatory Authority.

Likewise, the cabinet also approved the appointment of Dr. Dur e Shehwar Faisal as the representative of the Private Healthcare Establishment Sector in the Board.

On the recommendation of the Ministry of National Health, the cabinet also approved the formation of a search committee for the appointment of the vice-chancellor of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Medical University Islamabad. The minister for national health will head the committee.

The cabinet also approved the decisions taken in the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) held on January 9, 2024.