Pak
politicians taking our taxes, not paying their own: UK minister
LONDON:
International Development Secretary Justine Greening has defended giving millions
in aid to Pakistan amid suggestions the Pakistani politicians were “taking our
taxes” while not paying their own.
Pakistan
receives more money in aid than almost any other state but a report last
December claimed two-thirds of its MPs have not filled out tax returns,
including its top rulers. Sir Malcolm Bruce, chairman of the Commons
International Development committee, raised fears that Pakistan’s approach was
“we’ll take your money and do what we please.”
He
asked the secretary of state: “What influence do we have over the Pakistan
government? They are taking aid programmes; they are taking our taxes, not
paying their own taxes. There are billions of pounds they have got in bank
accounts yet they are taking money from the IMF. Everybody collectively says we
expect them to do something. They have had plans in the past to raise their tax
base, it’s gone down, not up.”
He
added: “To put it at it most negative, are they saying, “well, we’ll take your
money and do what we please?”Ms Greening insisted
there were short and long-term reasons why increasing investment in Pakistan
was a “sensible” move but said the government was not trying to “buy
influence.”
MPs
on the International Development Committee were told that ministers were
pressing the Pakistani government to make a raft of reforms, with tax affairs a
high priority.” At the moment, 70% of Pakistan’s MPs are not filing a tax
return,” Ms Greening said. We know that their tax base
is probably one of the smallest in relation to their GDP in the world.”
Ms
Greening said she wanted to see Pakistan become rated as a “less corrupt
country” and improvements on human rights and
democracy. But the Tory cabinet minister sidestepped questions over what it
would take for the government to end aid to Pakistan.
[The
News, January 30, 2013]
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