In the meantime, he advised against making any speculation on the matter and said any announcement would only be made next year.
“The withdrawal of petrol subsidy is particularly aimed at people who can afford it, that is people who naturally don’t deserve the subsidy, such as the top 15% income group (T15) and foreigners.
“I don’t think we should be speculating on the income threshold rate at this time. The most important thing now is to study the data very well and make sure (the targeted subsidy) is focused on the right groups,” Amir told reporters after attending the Royal Gala Dinner celebrating the 120th anniversary of the St John’s Institution here last night.
Following the tabling of the 2025 budget on Friday, Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman criticised the government, claiming it plans to raise the income threshold for welfare assistance.
He said it would inadvertently impact the middle class income group.
Citing data from the statistics department, Syed Saddiq said that removing health, petrol, and education subsidies for the T15 could result in families with a combined income of around RM12,000, or individuals with a salary of RM7,000, losing out on the targeted subsidy.
In his budget speech, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also finance minister, had announced that targeted subsidies for RON95 petrol will be implemented in mid-2025 but added that 85% of the population would still receive the subsidies.
Amir also dismissed a claim by Perikatan Nasional MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan that the 2025 budget was “underwhelming”.
He said the budget had adequately balanced the need to spur the economy and assist the underprivileged.
He added that the budget would mobilise funds from government and government-linked investment companies (GLICs) to increase the development expenditure.
“The development expenditure is RM86 billion. If you look at what the GLICs are committing, the total development expenditure will go up to RM120 billion. That’s a strong commitment to grow the country.
“At the same time, we are looking after the people by lifting wages and providing handouts for those who are still struggling. It’s a balanced and strong budget,” Amir said.
With a total allocation of RM421 billion, the 2025 federal government budget is the largest in history, with a RM27.2 billion increase compared with the RM393.8 billion that was allocated for 2024.