KUALA LUMPUR: Finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz has shot down a proposal by Bersatu MP Redzuan Yusof to impose a windfall tax on companies that enjoy tax incentives, saying it will hurt investments.
Redzuan (PN-Alor Gajah) made the proposal in the Dewan Rakyat when he interjected the finance minister during his winding-up speech on the Supply Bill 2022 at the committee stage today.
He argued that the windfall tax should be imposed on multinational and pioneer companies that enjoy 12-year tax breaks and make more than RM100 million, as well as those in the palm oil, banking and rubber glove sectors.
Tengku Zafrul replied: “Your proposal will impact our investments. The intention of the ‘cukai makmur’ (prosperity or windfall tax) is to create revenue to strengthen our public healthcare system and guarantee the well-being of people badly affected by the pandemic.”
Redzuan again interjected, saying not all companies that had been enjoying tax breaks would be subjected to the tax, adding that it should apply to “companies that we see as not beneficial to the government”.
“These are the companies that have failed to fulfill their foreign investment pledge or create job opportunities for the people.
“They should be subjected to some form of ‘penalty’, so we should review the tax incentives that they enjoy,” he said.
Tengku Zafrul said the MP’s suggestions needed to be studied because there were both positive and negative consequences.
When tabling the national budget on Oct 29, the finance minister announced a one-off 33% “cukai makmur” on companies with chargeable income of over RM100 million for the year of assessment 2022.