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Sunday, 14 March 2010 11:02
Last updated on Sunday, 14 March 2010 11:09
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| GST Will Not Be Tabled For 2nd Reading |
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KUALA LUMPUR, 13 MARCH 2010: The Goods and Services Tax (GST) will not be tabled for second reading when Parliament sits on Monday.
Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah
Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah said government needed more time to gather feedback from the rakyat.
"It (GST) will not be tabled for second reading in the March/April session (of Parliament) because we need more time to engage with the public.
"We want the public's opinion on GST," Husni told reporters after opening the Kuala Lumpur Malay Chamber of Commerce (KLMCC)'s annual general meeting here today.
The bill was first tabled in Parliament last December.
On when it would be tabled, Husni said: "It will depend on our engagement with the public and acceptance of the rakyat on the implementation of GST. So, we do not want to put a timeframe on that."
Proposed to be enforced in the third-quarter of next year, the GST is aimed at widening the tax base and reducing the country's deficit.
Meanwhile, KLMCC's President Datuk Syed Amin Aljeffri said the chamber had signed a memorandum of understanding with ACL Resources Bhd to develop a 12-storey hotel in Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur.
"We are in the process of getting approval from the authorities and would shortlist contractors before the year-end. We hope to start the ground breaking early next year," he explained.
The RM15 million hotel will be developed on a build, operate and transfer basis by ACL Resources, which will also operate the hotel for 60 years.
As the land belonged to KLMCC, it will receive long-term sustainable income in the form of fixed annual revenue from ACL Resources. |
