Austerity must not be an emergency instrument but a permanent conditionPakistan's latest austerity measures — salary cuts at state-owned enterprises, a freeze on vehicle purchases, a ban on official foreign travel, and cabinet members foregoing two months' pay — have been triggered by the fuel shock from the US-Israel war on Iran. Austerity must not be an emergency instrument. Two-month salary freezes and two-month travel bans are political theatre without structural permanence. Pakistan cannot keep borrowing the language of austerity and lending the practice to convenience. Hard caps on official expenditure must be legislated with automatic triggers before any external crisis forces the conversation.

Source: The Express Tribune March 16, 2026 01:24 UTC