Finance Bill 2021
Cautious optimism or justified pessimism? Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq The Finance Bill 2021 with federal budget will be unveiled today. Will it bring relief for the unemployed, pensioners with no other source of income, low-paid salaried persons and…
Unconstitutional “agricultural income” taxation
Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq “I think the landowners’ lobby is powerful in the assembly and they might not allow downward revision of non-taxable income. Instead of filing Agricultural Income Tax returns with the provincial governments, the same should…
Power vis-à-vis character
Huzaima Bukhari “Power does not corrupt men; fools, however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power”–George Bernard Shaw What is exactly meant by corruption? Transparency International provides a very simple definition: “We define corruption as the abuse…
Budget, jobs, taxes & growth
Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq “The Laffer Curve, by the way, was not invented by me; it has its origins way back in time. For example, the Muslim philosopher Ibn Khaldun wrote in his fourteenth-century work The Muqaddimah: It…
Tax proposals for Budget 2021
Growth, broad base & low-rate taxes Huzaima Bukhari, Dr. Ikramul Haq & Syed Muhammad Ijaz “A comprehensive strategy had been formulated to shift the gear and move to higher economic growth. I do not believe in increase in taxes to increase…
Budgets of, by & for elites
Dr. Ikramul Haq Like every budget of Pakistan since decades, the latest one, expected on June 11, 2021, will be no different and having the same features: burdening the common people, appeasing the mighty, not withdrawing benefits available to the…
Budget, tax targets & IMF
Dr. Ikramul Haq Budget for fiscal year 2021-22 is in the making amidst difficult times when the all sectors of economy need tax incentives for survival in the wake of Covid-19 endemic, especially after the third and deadly wave that…
Budget FY 2022
Taxes, inflation & social welfare Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has achieved a historic milestone of collecting taxes of Rs. 4.17 trillion in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, for…
Legislation and governments
Huzaima Bukhari “Laws are spider webs through which the big flies pass and the little ones get caught”–Honore de Balzac The interesting thing about legislation in a country is that those who understand its significance are the ones who are…