The government will take up the issue of including entertainment tax in the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) with the Empowered Committee on VAT, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and External Affairs, Anand Sharma said on Tuesday (February 17).

"We will consider the demand of the entertainment industry for inclusion of entertainment tax in GST itself, so that there is a single tax on the industry," Sharma told reporters, on the sidelines of the Ficci Frames 2009 convention.

GST, which will replace various indirect taxes, is slated for introduction from April 2010. The Minister also mentioned, the government was prepared to consider further requirements of the media and entertainment industry, to weather the fallout of the global economic crisis.

The government had increased the DAVP advertisement rates by 24 per cent, and reduced the customs duty on newsprint to give relief to the media industry. "We are still open and are willing to come out with a new relief package, in order to provide a stimulus to the industry," cited Sharma.