Next budget for all walks of people: Finance minister

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal has said that bringing wellbeing to all classes of people have been taken into consideration while formulating the next fiscal’s budget.

The minister was responding to a reporter after attending two simultaneous virtual meetings by the Cabinet Committee on Public Procurement and Economic Affairs, chaired by him on Thursday.

“It is not true that in the last two or three years, the budget has provided a lot of facilities to the rich and not to the low-income people,” the minister told the reporter.

He said there are many benefits that spill across the rich, middle and low income people when a decision is made. “Now, if the opportunity is awarded to someone big, the main goal is to create a workplace for ordinary people, too,” he claimed.

It should be seen whether there is any benefit in the society as a whole. “If given a chance, if something good happens, the marginalised people will be the beneficiaries. These are the ones we have given priority to,” he further said.

Asked about the budget being written amid rising commodity prices, he said all the nations of the world are experiencing ups and downs, now.

“The rich and the poor are not out of it. Our main task will be stabilising the prices of essentials. We want to bring it together through different policies. We need growth.”

Kamal said his government is trying to make people suffer less. “Eid is coming, lentils will be distributed among one crore poor families,” he added .

If the prices of gas and electricity go up, it will be suicidal, he said, referring to the reaction of traders. If the price goes up, of course, one way or the other, it will have an impact on someone.

“We want the impact to be less. I will make sure that everything stays at a tolerable level. That is why the government itself is sharing it with the consumers.”