Govt to remove haj and power subsidies for T20

The high-income group (T20) in the country will not benefit from electricity subsidies and haj financial assistance, said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

He said the main database (Padu) would be used to manage and coordinate the distribution of subsidies to eligible groups.

"We are not raising electricity rates except for the T20. Only the T20, those with big houses, will not be given electricity subsidies.

"Padu can coordinate all the figures mentioned. This is the same as the haj financial assistance, where there is an increase for B40. For T20, there is no longer any increase or subsidy from the government. They should bear the full costs of haj because they are well-to-do," he said in a question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Anwar, who is also the finance minister, was replying to a question from Hamzah Zainudin (PN-Larut), who wanted to know about new and drastic policies implemented by Anwar's administration to drive the nation's economy, taking into consideration the risks of a shrinking global economy.

Anwar said the exclusion of this group from the subsidy scheme was to facilitate the granting of subsidies in a more targeted manner.