PUTRAJAYA, Aug 29 — The government has no plans to introduce a broad-based consumption tax, particularly the Goods and Services Tax (GST), as an alternative to removing subsidies for RON95 petrol, said Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil.

Fahmi, who is also the spokesperson for the unity government, dismissed these claims as there have been no discussions on the matter.

"No, there were never discussions,” he said briefly, addressing the rumours when asked by reporters after attending the full dry-run session of the 2024 National Day Celebration at Dataran Putrajaya today.

Fahmi was responding to an article by an online media outlet that claimed the government was weighing on reintroducing a broad-based consumption tax instead of implementing subsidy cuts for RON 95 as the government seeks to bolster its finances.

The article, citing sources familiar with the matter, claimed that the Cabinet had discussed this measure, arguing that reinstating GST might be politically easier than removing petrol subsidies for RON95, given that Malaysia is an oil producer and many Malaysians view affordable petrol as essential.

Separately, Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli reportedly said that Malaysia is not keen on reintroducing the GST to increase its revenue, as suggested by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

"There are many ways to achieve fiscal strengthening with different groups offering varying perspectives,” Rafizi said earlier this week. — Bernama