On Thursday, the House of Representatives rejected changes to consumption and company taxes that President Bola Tinubu had proposed in the controversial tax bills as it adopted the Tax Reform Bill as a working document.
President Tinubu was seeking to double the value-added tax (VAT) rate to 15 per cent over six years to help fund the national budget and change how the revenue is distributed among the 36 states of the federation.
But the lower chamber of the National Assembly rejected the proposal, dealing a blow to his efforts to bolster government revenue and reduce borrowings.
The Speaker of the House of Reps, Mr Abbas Tajudeen, said after deliberations on clauses of the bill, it was adopted as a working document.
Mr Tajudeen, who commended the Committee on Finance for a work well done, said the report was a reflection of the mind of Nigerians.
“All the 36 states, including the Federal Capital Territory have their representatives in the sub-committee.
“This is the first time such a report is getting hundred per cent approval by almost all members,” he said.
On his part, the Chairman of the finance committee, Mr James Faleke, said that contentious areas were well taken care of, adding that the committee recommended that VAT should be based on consumption but explained that it still remains 7.5 per cent as it had been.
Mr Falake said the committee recommended a repeal of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to establish the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), but kicked against a proposal to lower the company tax rate to 25 per cent by next year, from 30 per cent currently.