MP calls for white paper on subsidy, welfare reforms

Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan said the eligibility criteria for targeted subsidies should be refined in the 2026 budget to ensure that those most in need – particularly people in the B40 and M40 income groups – receive appropriate support due to the increasingly high cost of living.

“If the government really wants to improve the efficiency of targeted subsidies and aid, it should table a truly comprehensive white paper on the reform of the welfare assistance and subsidy system,” he said in a post-budget statement.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had earlier told the Dewan Rakyat that subsidy rationalisation measures have saved the government about RM15.5 billion a year.

Wan Saiful urged the government to revert to a cash transfer system for eligible individuals, a system introduced in 2012 that channels aid directly to recipients without intermediaries.

The government should conduct a review of welfare and subsidy mechanisms to ensure efficient and transparent distribution.

He noted that in the UK a universal credit system was introduced in 2010, which unified various aid and subsidy schemes into a single, integrated mechanism.

Wan Saiful said the UK system allowed applicants to access all eligible assistance through a single application, unlike the current system in Malaysia which involves multiple agencies and layers of bureaucracy.

In tabling the 2026 budget estimates today, Anwar announced that Malaysians aged 18 and above will receive another round of RM100 Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) aid in February next year.

He said RM15 billion has been allocated for the SARA initiative in 2026, boosted by savings from targeted diesel and RON95 fuel subsidies.

Nine million recipients of Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) aid will receive RM100 a month next year, while one million e-Kasih recipients will get RM200 a month.