PM Shehbaz confirms IMF role in budget prep
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed on Tuesday that the federal budget for next year was prepared in collaboration with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). His remarks came as Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb announced significant amendments to the proposed finance bill for 2024-25. “We had to prepare the budget jointly with the IMF” because of the prevailing circumstances and ground realities, the prime minister said in the National Assembly when he took the floor briefly to respond to some points raised by a PTI member regarding the prevailing sense of deprivation in south Punjab, taxes on fertilisers and burden on farmers. PM Shehbaz expressed hope for a positive response from the lender, but refrained from making a premature statement. He said if the government received any response from the IMF, he would share it with parliament, expressing hope for some “good news”. However, it was unclear if the premier was referring to the IMF bailout or relaxations related to fertiliser.