Imran Khan's office objects to SPB Amendment Bill 2021 introduced in Pakistan's Parliament

Islamabad, Ta. 03 January 2022 Monday

Pakistan's Imran Khan government is facing a severe economic crisis. To run the country, Pakistan has borrowed from the International Monetary Fund, including some international institutions, on certain conditions. The government of Pakistan has come up with a new bill to meet that condition. The bill is now being questioned by Pakistan's prime minister's office.

The PMO objected to the central bank granting autonomy

The PMO has lashed out at a bill granting autonomy to Pakistan's central bank, the State Bank of Pakistan, to meet some of the IMF's conditions. The bill calls for a complete ban on government borrowing from the State Bank of Pakistan, which the PMO has called a disaster.

The PMO has said that granting full autonomy to the State Bank would mean that its governor would no longer be required to consult the Prime Minister on economic issues. The central bank will now take all the decisions on its own and Imran Khan's government will not be able to interfere.

The Prime Minister's Office has also expressed skepticism about extending the tenure of the central bank governor from three years to five years. Earlier, there was no condition from the IMF to extend the term, but now there is a condition that the Prime Minister's Office is concerned about.