Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 662207,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/662207/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 238,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Rotich",
    "speaker_title": "The Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1242,
        "legal_name": "Ronald Kiprotich Tonui",
        "slug": "ronald-kiprotich-tonui"
    },
    "content": "Hon. Speaker, our economy grew by 5.6 per cent in 2015 and is expected to rise to about 6 per cent this year. On the other hand, the world economy grew by 3.1 per cent while the sub Saharan economies grew by about 3.4 per cent. This good news allows us to share the good performance of the economy as widely as possible. Consequently, I propose to exempt from tax; bonuses, overtime and retirement benefits paid to workers who fall under the lowest income tax band. In addition, I propose to expand the tax bands and increase personal relief by 10 per cent. These measures are meant to cushion workers from the high cost of living and demonstrate our commitments to sharing the growth of our economy. The Government appreciates that it has received numerous income tax proposals from various stakeholders which are meant to facilitate the taxation reform agenda. In connection with this, some of these proposals will be considered when reviewing the Income Tax Act, Cap 470, which is currently ongoing. I intend to table the Bill in this House in the next financial year. Hon. Speaker, as I did mention earlier, we shall be introducing three landmark financial sector legislations, namely; the Financial Services Authority Bill, the Nairobi International Financial Centre Bill, and the Moveable Property Security Rights Bill. In addition to these major reforms, I am proposing a number of other changes in order to facilitate growth and stability of the sector. Hon. Speaker, on banking, last year, I did table in this House specific measures to increase the capitalization of banks in order to ensure we have a strong and stable banking system but our efforts were not successful. I am seeking to reintroduce the proposals and I am hopeful that hon. Members will look at them more favourably in light of the recent developments in our banking sector. In addition, the current monetary penalty for violation of the Banking Act or the prudential guidelines is capped at Kshs5 million. This amount has proved to be too little compared to the seriousness of some of the violations institutions have committed. I am therefore proposing to increase the maximum penalty to Kshs20 million and to allow for additional penalties for each day that the violation continues. The Credit Information Sharing (CIS) framework in Kenya has continued to develop and increase its coverage as a result of facilitative reforms that we have put in place over the years. Indeed, the expansion of the CIS framework was one of the key factors behind the improvement in Kenya’s ranking in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business indicators this year. Apart from the obvious benefits to the borrowers who maintain good credit history and to lenders who are able to get information on potential borrowers, the CIS regime is important to the economy as a whole in terms of increasing access to credit, reducing transaction costs, enhancing efficiency in financial intermediation and fostering financial sector stability through reduction in non- performing loans. To maximise on these benefits, I am today proposing additional amendments to the Banking Act as well as the Sacco Societies Act to facilitate cross border information sharing and to allow Saccos and utility companies to more effectively participate in the CIS framework. Hon. Speaker, with the increasing numbers of SACCOs invariably using the name “SACCO” or “SACCO Society”, it has become difficult to know the differences between a cooperative society, a SACCO society, a deposit taking SACCO society (DTS) and a non- depositing taking SACCO society (non-DTS). The emergence and exponential growth of “Matatu or PSV SACCOs” have further fuelled the confusion. Therefore, I propose to amend the SACCO Society Act to provide that only SACCOs that are licensed for deposit taking can use The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}