KUALA LUMPUR, Jan. 22 -- Government debt surged by 36 per cent between 2019 and 2022 as the Covid-19 crisis forced Putrajaya to borrow heavily, leaving subsequent administrations under mounting pressure to service the rising obligations, Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong told Parliament this morning.

Liew said emergency fiscal measures rolled out to cushion the pandemic's economic fallout had pushed the government's debt-servicing coverage ratio to 16 per cent in 2025, up from just over 12 per cent in 2019.

This backdrop ultimately prompted the Anwar administration to enact the Fiscal Responsibility Act, or Act 850, the deputy minister said, allowing tighter spending discipline as it works to consolidate public finances and pare do...