DAP is against any proposed capital gains tax, including tax on gains from share trading, former finance minister Lim Guan Eng said.

This method should not be used to rescue the government and replenish its revenue, the DAP secretary-general said.

He said a capital gains tax would also cover inheritance tax, and had been mooted under the Pakatan Harapan government, but which he, as finance minister then, had rejected.

“It was rejected by me as it will make Malaysia less competitive, with the country recording one of the highest corporate tax rates among the 60 biggest economies of the world,” he said in a statement today.

Lim was reacting to deputy finance minister Yamani Hafez Musa, who said on September 22 that a capital gains tax and a one-off higher tax rate on companies that have performed well during the Covid-19 epidemic are being considered.

Yamani told the Dewan Rakyat that these were among measures Putrajaya is studying to boost revenue.

Lim said the government must realise that the country is facing a severe national crisis with the Covid-19 epidemic and economic recession.

“During this critical juncture, the government should put utmost priority on rescuing the people with financial aid and not the other way round of wanting the people to rescue the government’s depleting revenues.

“Offering financial aid to save the lives and livelihoods of the people is the duty of the government, not impoverish the rakyat further by squeezing them with additional taxes,” he said.

He added that Putrajaya should instead do cost-cutting and stop wasteful projects and use funds to focus on restoring people’s lives and livelihoods. – October 2, 2021.