KUCHING: The Kuching Association of Talent Development and Welfare of Special Needs (KATSN) adviser Datuk Sim Kiang Chiok today lauded an announcement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to provide specific assistance for autistic children in the 2025 Budget yesterday.
He said as a parent of an autistic son, he was encouraged by the specific assistance provided for such children.
"The budget includes support for early training centres, schools, cash allowances, tuition fee assistance, grants for private schools, autism service centres and an increase in tax exemption for parents from RM4,000 to RM6,000 for treatment of autistic children."
He said these measures showed that the needs of autistic people would continue to be cared for by the federal government.
Sim, who is also the Sarawak Housing and Real Estate Developers' Association (Sheda) adviser, however, said support for housing in the budget was limited.
"While there are loan guarantees for 57,000 first-time homebuyers and RM900 million allocated for affordable housing, there is no Home Ownership Campaign (HOC).
"Under the HOC, developers would provide at least a 10 per cent discount and the government would waive stamp duties for property purchases, including loan documents.
"The budget also lacks a deposit assistance of RM30,000 for first-time buyers to help them meet the initial deposit," he added.
However, he said there was a RM7,000 individual tax relief for housing loan interest payments of up to RM500,000, which could be claimed for three consecutive assessment years.
"While it is helpful, this relief is small in comparison to other possible measures," he said.
On the minimum wage, Sim said he feared the increase from RM1,500 to RM1,700, starting Feb1 next year with a six-month delay for businesses with fewer than five employees, might impact the cost of doing business and result in higher prices for goods.
"Additionally, the wage hike will likely create a ripple effect, requiring other wages to be adjusted as well," he said.
Sim also called for a careful study on the decision to introduce targeted subsidies for RON95 fuel that were set to begin in the middle of next year.
He said this was to avoid further inflation, especially coming just four months after the minimum wage increase.
He also said the expansion of the service tax and SST will likely contribute to rising prices and an increase in the cost of living.
"It will also make doing business in Malaysia more challenging," he added.
However, he lauded the government for increasing cash aid for the B40 and M40 groups, including singles, saying that it was a positive step to ease the burden from the rising cost of living.
"However, with the expected rise in fuel prices, the minimum wage increase and expanded SST as announced, prices are likely to go up.
"Hopefully, with the 'give and take' of this budget the impact on the cost of living will be minimal," he added.
Overall, he said the federal budget is both comprehensive and the largest budget aimed at supporting our nation's growth.
"However, Sarawak's allocation is only RM5.9 billion out of the RM86 billion development budget, which amounts to just 6.8 per cent of the total. This is a relatively small portion," he added.