Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday praised his ministry’s performance over the last three years while saying that the Bharatiya Janata Party had inherited a weak system in terms of credibility on account of “corruption and indecisiveness”. “In the last three years, we have restored the credibility of the economy,” Jaitley said.

He praised the government’s demonetisation and Goods and Services Tax initiatives, which have drawn criticism on several grounds. Jaitley said the Narendra Modi-led government has introduced a new normal with its demonetisation programme. “It is no longer safe to deal in cash. We have shown decisiveness in policy making.” On the Goods and Services Tax regime, Jaitley said decisions on the matter were taken by consensus. The finance minister said the administration was in a state of preparedness to roll out the programme on the scheduled date of July 1. “Using media propaganda for getting rates varied will not make a significant impact on the GST council’s decision,” Jaitley said.

The minister added that the governments reforms have made India the largest recipients of Foreign Direct Investment.