Ismail Sabri calls for reintroduction of GST in Malaysia

Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has called for the reintroduction of the goods and services tax (GST) once again, The Star reports. In the Dewan Rakyat yesterday (March 7, 2024), the former prime minister and current Bera MP said bringing back the GST could present the increasing price of goods due to ineffective taxation systems.

“I agree with calls by other MPs that GST should be reintroduced regardless of whatever term is used for it. It (GST) is proven to be more transparent and aid the government’s fiscal standing through tax collection,” said Ismail Sabri.

When asked by Kampar MP Chong Zhemin on why the GST wasn’t reintroduced during his tenure as prime minister, Ismail Sabri said the matter was already discussed by the Cabinet. “At the time, we issued a statement that the Cabinet discussed the matter (GST) and was studying it,” he added.

As a brief recap, the GST replaced the sales and service tax (SST) in April 2015 but was then scrapped in favour of SST in September 2018 when the Pakatan Harapan government took over the reins. If you’re curious how GST impacts the automotive industry and on car prices, we’ve covered the mechanics of both taxation systems in the past.

Ismail Sabri calls for reintroduction of GST in Malaysia

During the tabling of Budget 2024 last October, the government said it would increase the rate of the SST from 6% to 8%, which has since come into effect from March 1 this year. With this, vehicle ownership costs have gone up, and you can find out more about it here.

Ismail Sabri isn’t the only one with renewed calls for the reintroduction of the GST. On Tuesday (March 5, 2024), MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong took to Facebook saying some people had asked him to continue pushing to revive the GST. Last September, Wee said the many businesses were dodging taxes under the present SST system, resulting in reduced revenue for the government.

“You can call it the value added tax, consumption tax or Madani tax, as long as it is a consumption-based tax,” the Ayer Hitam MP said when debating the motion of thanks on the Royal Address in Parliament on Feb 28, 2024.

Do you support the call by some MPs to revive the GST or should we continue on with the current SST? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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