The Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) responded to the budget announced earlier this evening.
MAH president Dato N Subramaniam issued a press statement to this effect.
First and foremost, the tourism industry is appreciative that the Government has acknowledged the needs of the industry particularly to restart and rebuild with the extension of the targeted wage subsidy program.
This is crucial for the industry to rehire manpower needed and ensure the needs of its people are being addressed.
Among other items that the industry requested and was announced moments ago includes extension on the exemption of tourism tax and also the personal income tax relief for year 2022.
On this the industry had however proposed for the amount to be increased to RM5,000 to encourage the spirit of “Keluarga Malaysia” with more family bonding activities at the same time contributing to domestic tourism.
The hotel industry had also requested for extension of the Service Tax exemption to further add value to the spending power of the people at hotels, but this was not announced and we hope that the Govt will reconsider this to boost tourism recovery.
Various funds announced for upkeep and upgrade of tourism infrastructure as well as specifically for budget hotels are timely, and would contribute to the rebuilding of the tourism industry’s competitiveness.
The industry is also looking forward to more details on the Penjana Tourism Financing and BPMB Rehabilitation Scheme funding that could be beneficial to stakeholders if made accessible at low or even zero interest. Industry stakeholders are hopeful for it to provide immediate funding and cash flow.
While general tourism marketing and operational budget was not mentioned in the announcement, industry hopes that the Government is allocating sufficient budget to promote and market Malaysia all over again as the choice destination amidst fierce competition with neighbouring countries.
On this nevertheless, grants and promotional funding introduced to encourage tourism, arts and culture initiatives as well as tax incentive for events are much welcomed. The Government has also taken consideration on the issue raised by the industry on entertainment tax, and the announced exemption at all federal territories will not only benefit operators particularly theme parks, but also the people.
We hope that other state Governments will follow suit.
Overall the announcement is encouraging for the tourism industry, while the industry is still hopeful for more refinements along its implementations.