By B Izzak

KUWAIT: The coronavirus crisis has cost the government KD 740 million, including KD 240 million to support the wages of Kuwaitis in the private sector, head of the assembly budgets committee MP Adnan Abdulsamad said yesterday.

Abdulsamad said the assembly is expected to approve the 2020/2021 budget which has already started on April 1 following the government decision to reduce spending by at least 20 percent from the previous year's figure.

He said the draft law to stop deducting the 10 percent of revenues in favor of the future generations fund will support the state reserve fund. According to the draft law, expected to be approved by the assembly today, the deduction will be made only when the budget posts a surplus.

In the meantime, MP Riyadh Al-Adasani said yesterday he plans to file a third grilling against Finance Minister Barrak Al-Sheetan over his policies which he claims are against the people. Adasani said this time MP Rakan Al-Nasef will join him in the grilling. The first grilling ended after the debate and the second grilling ended with 10 MPs filing a no-confidence motion which the minister defeated comfortably.

He said on Twitter that the planned grilling against the finance minister will focus on the minister's financial policy and the way he has been dealing with major and sensitive issues. He held him responsible for initiating an economic document stipulating a series of austerity measures and raises of public services' costs. The lawmaker also said that his threat to file to grill His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah still stands and he will file the grilling later.

MP Abdulkarim Al-Kandari has already announced that he will file to grill His Highness the Prime Minister today over allegations that he was responsible for government plans to raise public charges and impose austerity measures affecting Kuwaiti citizens.