Budget 2026-27 is all-inclusive and relief-oriented, says Attaullah Tarar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar on Saturday described the federal budget for 2026-27 as an “all-inclusive and relief-oriented” budget that reflects the government’s sustained efforts over the past two years under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Speaking at a post-budget press conference alongside Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, Tarar said the prime minister had fulfilled his commitment to provide meaningful relief to multiple segments of society, including salaried individuals, businesses and exporters.

He said the government was firmly pursuing an export-led growth model to strengthen the national economy and increase Pakistan’s presence in international markets through “Made in Pakistan” products.

“An increase in turnover for the export sector will help businesses expand, create employment opportunities and benefit the labour force,” Tarar said.

Highlighting measures for the lower-middle class, the minister pointed to the government’s Apna Ghar programme and the allocation of Rs 90 billion for the housing sector in the new budget.

He said the housing and development sectors were linked to more than a dozen industries and would therefore act as a catalyst for broader economic activity. Taxes on the sale and purchase of housing have also been reduced to encourage investment in the sector.

Recalling the economic situation inherited by the government, Tarar said Pakistan had been facing negative GDP growth when the current administration took office.

“Our first target was to achieve economic stability, and that stability has been acknowledged internationally,” he said.

Tarar noted that the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund had appreciated Pakistan’s macroeconomic stability during discussions in Davos, while the World Bank and other international partners had also recognized reforms introduced in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

According to the minister, those reforms have placed the economy on a positive trajectory toward growth of between 3.7% and 4%.

He described the reforms within the FBR as “historic and unprecedented,” saying the institution had been freed from political influence and equipped with faceless, IT-based systems to improve transparency and reduce revenue leakages.

Tarar said the government had also begun strict enforcement measures against large industries, including the sugar sector, to ensure they contribute fairly to the national exchequer instead of placing the tax burden disproportionately on salaried taxpayers.

Addressing tax litigation, he said the government had moved to end collusion and delaying tactics that historically stalled tax cases, adding that digitisation and administrative reforms had helped create the fiscal space needed for public relief measures.

On the social sector, Tarar highlighted allocations for education and healthcare infrastructure, including the Islamabad Jinnah Medical Complex, the Danish University in Muzaffarabad, and institutions in Sindh, Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan.

He said the government had also changed the political culture by ensuring appointments across government departments are made strictly on merit.

Tarar urged the media to recognize what he described as the government’s success in turning a difficult economic situation into a stable and inclusive roadmap for growth.