A Budget for all. That sums up the 2008 Budget unveiled by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi Friday, which offers goodies to all segments of the Malaysian population, from kindergarten kids, civil servants and businessmen to senior citizens. Totalling RM176.9 billion, the generous budget, an increase of 10.9 per cent from this year's, emphasises three main strategies -- enhancing the nation's competitiveness, strengthening human capital development and ensuring the well-being of all Malaysians, Bernama reported. Coming on the heels of the nation's 50th birthday just a week ago, the budget is aimed at countering the increasing cost of living through measures to raise the people's disposable income. "As we enter the next 50 years, it is important that we leverage on the strength of our diversity and remain united in our quest towards achieving developed nation status," Abdullah, who is also Finance Minister, said when tabling the 2008 Budget in the Lower House of Parliament here. Themed "Together Building the Nation and Sharing Prosperity", the budget also places weight on infrastructure development, including in Sabah and Sarawak. The 2008 Budget also provides for a conducive investment climate for the private sector as it wants the nation's corporate tax regime to remain competitive. To improve the efficiency and simplify the administration of corporate tax, the government will implement a single-tier tax system, effective from the year of assessment 2008, where profits are only taxed at the company level and dividends received are exempted from tax. "The reduction in corporate tax (the government in the 2007 Budget announced a reduction of corporate tax from 28 per cent to 27 per cent in 2007, 26 per cent in 2008 and 25 per cent in 2009) and the introduction of the single-tier system will enable higher dividends to be distributed to share holders," said Abdullah. The prime minister also announced several measures to be adopted by the Special Taskforce to Facilitate Business (Pemudah) in an effort to ensure a conducive environment to attract private investment. To attract quality human capital, especially professionals and skilled workers, the government will encourage and facilitate the entry of foreign workers who can add value to the nation's economy. To this end, the Immigration Department will shorten the processing period for the issuance of work permits to seven days for skilled workers, compared with 14 days previously. A new category of visa for business travellers would also be introduced to provide for a longer validity period, apart from the introduction of other features to facilitate easier entry into the country effective Jan 1, 2008, he said. --More
