Scope to whiten black money is an affront to honest taxpayers: CPD

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) has criticised the proposed budget for yet again providing scope to whiten black money.

CPD said that where the income tax ceiling has been raised to 30 per cent, scope has been given to whiten black money by paying 15 per cent tax. This is unacceptable from the point of both ethics and economics. It is an affront to those who pay their taxes regularly.

These observations were made by the executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Fahmida Khatun at a post-budget press briefing held today, Friday, at the Bangabandhu International Convention Centre in the capital. Finance minister Abul Hassan Mahmud Ali presented the 2024-25 financial year budget yesterday, Thursday, at the Jatiya Sangsad.

Fahmida Khatun said, the timing of the budget is important. On one side high inflation prevails, and on the other there is the reserve crisis - it is vital to restore economic stability in such circumstances. But there is no visible initiative in the budget to resolve this crisis.

Fahmida Khatun went on to say, first the problems that prevail in the economy must be acknowledged, the depth of these problems understood, and then a solution is to be sought. But there is nothing of this in the proposed budget.

It will not be possible to achieve the NBR revenue income target, the inflation and GDP growth targets as announced in the budget. It will not even be possible to meet the target for investment growth declared in the budget, said Fahmida Khatun.

Present at the press briefing were CPD's distinguished fellow Mustafizur Rahman, research director Khandakar Golam Moazzem and others.