Govt to continue to consult businessmen

Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday reaffirmed the government's commitment to maintaining an inclusive and ongoing consultative process with key stakeholders in the business community.

While meeting a Pakistan Business Council (PBC) delegation, led by its outgoing Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ehsan Malik and the incoming CEO Javed Kureish, the minister appreciated the council and particularly acknowledged the value of its policy input, research and the extensive sector-specific data regularly shared with the government.

According to a press release issued by the Finance Division, the minister welcomed the transition in PBC leadership and extended his full support to the incoming team. He underscored the importance of evidence-based policymaking and informed the delegation that the tax policy office had been relocated from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to the Finance Division, with a view to institutionalising tax policy formulation and strengthening engagement with forums such as the PBC.

Aurangzeb emphasised that the government places high value on the perspectives and feedback of the business and industrial community, and in line with this approach, the consultative process for the federal budget 2025-26 was initiated earlier than usual this year. This step was taken to allow greater time for dialogue, reflection and integration of a wide range of recommendations received from chambers, trade bodies and business forums into the budget-making process, he added.