KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 — The government has recorded nearly RM5 billion in savings as of July 14, from the implementation of expenditure control measures following the RM10 billion adjustment to the operating expenditure allocation for this year, said Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong.
On April 28, the Finance Ministry (MOF) issued directives to adjust allocations across all ministries and government agencies before holding engagement sessions to explain the expenditure control criteria that needed to be implemented in response to the global supply chain crisis.
He said the expenditure control measures implemented by the government in the first half of 2026 successfully improved the efficiency of public financial management without compromising the delivery of critical services to the people or the country’s economic stability.
“Due to the early interventions already undertaken by the government, Malaysia remains stable even in the face of the global supply chain crisis,” Liew told the Dewan Negara during today’s question-and-answer session.
He was responding to Senator Hussin Ismail’s question regarding budget savings across all ministries, the total allocations that were cut, and the impact studies conducted on those cuts.
Liew added that ministries and agencies were given the leeway to reorganise their respective expenditures based on current priorities and needs to ensure that public services to the people are not affected.
“At the same time, the MOF remains open to reviewing and discussing any urgent needs raised by ministries and agencies, subject to the government’s fiscal position and current expenditure priorities,” he said.
The deputy minister emphasised that budget adjustments will only involve non-critical expenditure, limit official travel, and defer the creation of new positions and the recruitment of new civil servants.
“The MOF is committed to ensuring that these expenditure adjustments are implemented without compromising essential services, particularly health services, subsidies, assistance and incentives to the people, social welfare aid, incentives to the agricultural sector, school aid, and other assistance that the government has committed,” Liew said.
