Finance minister says standing committees proposals to be included in Finance Bill 2026

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Saturday said recommendations submitted by standing committees after reviewing budget proposals would be incorporated into the Finance Bill 2026, where required.

Concluding the budget debate in the National Assembly, the finance minister rejected opposition criticism of the federal budget and said claims of discrepancies in budget documents were based on an incorrect interpretation of figures.

Aurangzeb said key economic indicators, including GDP data, had been presented before the National Accounts Committee, which includes representatives of the provinces, the federal government and relevant institutions.

He acknowledged that some lawmakers had raised concerns during the debate, but said the budget process had been conducted transparently.

The minister thanked parliamentarians for taking part in the debate, including Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Saleem Mandviwala and National Assembly Finance Committee Chairman Naveed Qamar.

Highlighting the government’s economic performance, Aurangzeb said industrial activity was continuing, the current account remained in surplus, exports were rising and IT exports had grown by 20%.

He said the government had generated an additional $14 billion in revenue over the past two years, calling it the highest increase since 1988.

On agriculture, the finance minister said the government had allocated Rs300 billion in interest-free loans for small farmers.

He said the programme was expected to benefit around 750,000 growers.

Aurangzeb said the economic direction set by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the previous budget had helped stabilise the economy.