The government spokesperson, Isaac Mwaura, has reiterated Treasury Cabinet John Mbadi's assertion that the Finance Bill 2025 has yet to be filed anywhere.
Speaking during the weekly press briefing on Monday, April 14, Mwaura stated that a finance bill would be filed only if the revenue collected in the financial year 2024/25 is determined not enough to cover the projected budget for the 2025/26 financial year.
This, Mwaura noted, would come after April 30, when the budget process will be concluded, upon which the government will decide whether to table a finance bill.
"As per the established timelines, revenue-raising measures, such as the finance bill, only follow the release of the draft budget after April 30th," he noted.
However, Mwaura emphasised that the government would prioritise other revenue generation measures instead of introducing new taxes for the next financial year.
This, he said, would be met by fostering tax administration in existing tax measures as well as ensuring accountability and oversight in government spending.
Currently, the Budget Policy Statement (BPS), which has estimated the 2025/26 financial year budget at Ksh4.26 trillion, has already been passed by the National Assembly.
These remarks come just a few days after the National Assembly budget committee chairperson and Molo Member of Parliament Kuria Kimani revealed that more taxes might be introduced if the revenue generated is not sufficient to cover ceilings in the upcoming financial year budget.
In an interview at NTV last week, the MP highlighted that the government has three sources of income generation, including taxes, donor financing, and appropriation in aid.
The reason why a finance bill has not been tabled yet is because the government would need to evaluate the revenue collected from these sources, analyse it against the budget, and then chart a way forward to either generate more income from taxes or make budget cuts.
"Therefore, the national treasury would need to evaluate the data on how much is available through those sources of revenue in the last quarter of the financial year to anticipate budgets," he stated.
“But in the event that there is evidence to show that the already existing tax measures, the appropriation in aid raised, and the donor commitments we have are sufficient to finance the ceilings, then there will not be a need for a finance bill.”
