THE Finance Ministry is conducting a detailed study on the proposed taxation on giant technology and social media companies such as Google and Facebook.

Second Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani said the matter came out of necessity, and to seek the best taxation mechanism and model.

“It is also to monitor the comprehensive review of online business taxation being made by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development,” he said when winding up the debate on the motion of thanks for the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s royal address for his ministry at the Dewan Rakyat today.

A suggestion was made that taxes should be levied on giant technology and media companies such as Google and Facebook, as both were said to control almost 70% of digital advertising expenditure in Malaysia.

The proposal was mooted during a luncheon talk between Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and media editors and publication permit holders at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre recently.

Johari dismissed the notion that the country’s economic growth was not palpable, saying that benefits like rising salaries, employment opportunities, and overseas spending proved otherwise.

He said based on the Department of Statistics data last year, salaries in the services sector increased by 5.4% and by 8.6% in the manufacturing sector.

“In terms of employment, if the economy did not grow, we would not have been able to create more jobs. Over the past three years, the government recorded an increase of 1.1 million jobs,” he said.

He said the people’s spending abroad rose to RM46 billion, while retail outlets increased from 66,000 to 73,000 units last year, attesting to the positive impact of economic growth on the people. – Bernama, March 19, 2018.