CYBERJAYA, April 17 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said today he is not discounting suggestions that ministers take a pay cut if the global energy crisis worsens and raises pressure on government spending.

Still, Anwar told reporters here he would prefer the discussion focus on Cabinet members’ performance instead, arguing that their salaries are already comparatively lower.

“Relatively, their salaries are already lower, so the more important thing now is that they perform,” he said in response to a question from the press.

“I don’t take my salary, but their salary is their right, and I think for as long as they do their job well, it’s not unreasonable (they continue to be paid),” he added.

“But let’s see. If the economy does get worse, we can consider it.”

Iran has been limiting passage through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that ⁠carries about a fifth of global oil and LNG flows, in response to US and Israeli airstrikes that began in late February.

The federal government's fuel subsidy bill has ballooned to billions from just RM700 million in March amid the war in the Middle East and the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

The Ministry of Finance said it expects April's fuel subsidies to hit RM7 billion.