Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe, M.P.

Jathika Jana balawegaya (JJB)· Anuradhapura

Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development

Profession: Politician

Roster profile ↗

Speeches 402 #9 of 225·#4 in party

Attendance 3/8 days present (of recorded)

Speech history

402 speeches

5 December 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe objected to allocating the full remaining half-hour of debate time solely to Opposition Members. He stated that Government Members also wished to speak and implied that the time should be shared. Debate - Appropriation Bill 2026 Committee Stage: Opening and Scheduling Parliamentary Procedure Read →
24 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe stated that, in addition to ETCA, previously signed agreements with Singapore and Thailand had been halted, with litigation on the Singapore FTA now understood to have concluded. He said a Cabinet-appointed high-level expert committee is reviewing these agreements to identify gaps and priorities, with recommendations expected by January on the President’s instructions. He indicated that, subject to the committee’s guidance, the Government aims to begin negotiations in the first quarter of the following year. Oral Question: India Trade Relations - Standing Order 27(2) Response Foreign Affairs Read →
24 November 2025 AI summary The Minister outlined the Government’s approach to advancing ETCA with India, stating that a Cabinet-appointed high-level committee is reviewing existing FTAs, including the ISFTA, to guide future negotiations with data, clear objectives and parliamentary disclosure. He said engagement with India would be strategically sequenced to benefit from India’s economic growth while protecting domestic industries, services, regulatory standards and national development priorities. He noted that cooperation may expand in areas such as tourism, ports, finance, renewable energy, digital technology, maritime services and higher education, with safeguards, trade remedies and a proposed bilateral investment treaty to precede ETCA commitments. Oral Question: India Trade Relations - Standing Order 27(2) Response Foreign AffairsPublic Finance Read →
24 November 2025 AI summary Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe responded that Sri Lanka’s trade deficit with India in 2024 should not be attributed to the Indo–Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement, arguing that the agreement has provided significant preferential access for Sri Lankan exports. He stated that USD 493.22 million of exports to India used ISFTA concessions, compared with only USD 324.78 million of imports from India under such concessions, indicating greater relative benefit to Sri Lankan exporters. He said India remains a natural trading partner for Sri Lanka and that the policy focus should be on improving export competitiveness and diversification rather than questioning the agreement itself. Oral Question: India Trade Relations - Standing Order 27(2) Response Foreign Affairs Read →
24 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe indicated he would begin reading a document and table the remaining portion instead of reading it in full. He sought the Chair or relevant Member’s consent for that procedure. Oral Question: India Trade Relations - Standing Order 27(2) Response Parliamentary Procedure Read →
24 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe responded to a question raised by Ravi Karunanayake under Standing Order 27(2) on 8 November 2025. He noted that the written answer was seven pages long and asked whether he should read it out in Parliament or table it. Oral Question: India Trade Relations - Standing Order 27(2) Response Parliamentary Procedure Read →
20 November 2025 AI summary Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe stated that while he was not opposed in principle, he had not agreed at the time to proceed with a stock market listing. He highlighted shareholding disparities at LTL, noting that most of its roughly 600 employees, particularly those joining after 2017, have no shares while about 15 employees receive substantial returns, including an estimated Rs. 1.3 billion from 2024 profits. He said the Government had identified these issues, was intervening to resolve them, and had restructured the CEB and acted against corruption as part of institutional reform. Committee Stage: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Head 119 (Ministry of Energy) Cut Motion and Debate Public FinanceCorruption & Governance Reform Read →
20 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe clarified that the issue was not whether the CPC agreed to receive shares or whether others agreed to provide them. He stated that if the requested 20 per cent share allocation to the CPC is granted, it would be acceptable, and that further increases could be considered without obstruction. Committee Stage: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Head 119 (Ministry of Energy) Cut Motion and Debate Public Finance Read →
20 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe briefly noted to Hon. Ajith P. Perera that he had two more minutes remaining, apparently referring to the time available for a parliamentary contribution. No substantive policy argument, proposal, or question was made in the excerpt. Committee Stage: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Head 119 (Ministry of Energy) Cut Motion and Debate Parliamentary Procedure Read →
20 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe described changes to the shareholding structure of LTL, stating that part of the CEB’s stake was transferred to West Coast Power to settle CEB debt and that concerns arose because the transfer was not made through the stock exchange. He said a later attempt to list about 22 per cent of shares to raise funds was stopped because the State’s 51 per cent holding had to be protected. He added that the proposal was for the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation to take 20 per cent, and that the IPO was halted after LTL indicated it could provide the required funds. Committee Stage: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Head 119 (Ministry of Energy) Cut Motion and Debate Public FinanceCorruption & Governance Reform Read →
20 November 2025 AI summary The Minister said power sector reforms are intended to reduce corruption, waste and costs, improve efficiency, lower electricity tariffs and production costs, and strengthen export competitiveness. He stated that the Government had completed long-delayed reforms within a year by establishing six companies fully owned by the CEB to cover generation, system operation, transmission, pension and benefit funds, and residual services, with further strengthening planned next year. He also said the unit cost of electricity had been reduced from Rs. 40 to Rs. 12, and clarified that LTL’s ownership comprised 63 per cent CEB, 27 per cent Teckpro, and 10 per cent held through an employee trust. Committee Stage: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Head 119 (Ministry of Energy) Cut Motion and Debate Public FinanceInfrastructure Read →
19 November 2025 AI summary Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe clarified that National Agri Marketing Services Limited is a wholly Treasury-owned State company with a seven-member board, and said its creation is intended to standardize and improve the management of Dedicated Economic Centres, not privatize them. He cited unresolved audit issues, unrecovered public investment, irregular stall allocations and inconsistent management practices across the 18 centres, and proposed centre-level management committees including officials, traders, farmers, banks, police and local authorities. He outlined plans to address post-harvest losses through improved packaging, operationalize the Indian-funded Dambulla cold storage facility by December, support Government purchases of potatoes and onions, and relocate or refurbish facilities including Thambuththegama. He said leases would be for five years with valuation-based rent revisions, and that earlier draft provisions referring to a private company or re-tendering had been changed after stakeholder consultations. Adjournment: Dedicated Economic Centres Corruption & Governance ReformAgriculturePublic Finance Read →
15 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe stated that unprecedented events are now taking place. The remark was brief and did not specify the events, policies, or legislation being referenced. Debate: Committee Stage - Appropriation Bill 2026, Special Spending Units (Heads 1, 2, 4-11, 13, 16-25) Corruption & Governance Reform Read →
15 November 2025 AI summary Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe stated that an incident had occurred involving an Opposition Member of Parliament. The remark appears to reference the treatment or experience of an Opposition MP, but no further details, proposals, or demands are provided in the excerpt. Debate: Committee Stage - Appropriation Bill 2026, Special Spending Units (Heads 1, 2, 4-11, 13, 16-25) Parliamentary Procedure Read →
15 November 2025 AI summary Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe said public service recruitment, largely halted since 2019, is being restarted to address an estimated 280,000 vacancies, with Cabinet approval already granted for 75,000 posts and a committee chaired by the Prime Minister’s Secretary assessing further recruitment needs. He said around 25,000 Development Officers currently teaching in schools could be recruited to the teacher service through the competitive examination process once pending litigation is resolved, contributing to over 100,000 approved recruitments, including about 30,000 teacher posts. He defended the Budget as people-centred and development-oriented, citing measures such as the Rs. 1,750 estate worker wage target and a Rs. 400 allowance supported by the Government and estate owners. He also began to raise issues concerning the role, accountability, and functioning of Presidential and Independent Commissions in public service delivery. Debate: Committee Stage - Appropriation Bill 2026, Special Spending Units (Heads 1, 2, 4-11, 13, 16-25) Public FinanceEmployment Read →
15 November 2025 AI summary The Minister said the Budget allocates funds for islandwide development, including roads, hospitals, schools and housing in the North and East, with a special housing project for 2,500 families affected by the war. He addressed pension issues, stating that a pending court case concerns teachers’ pension rights linked to the 1997 B.C. Perera Pay Commission and that the 2025 and 2026 Budget measures, including a new Pay Commission, aim to resolve pension and salary anomalies. He rejected opposition claims of politicization in community programmes and defended the VAT threshold reduction as a compliance measure targeting evasion within the value chain. He also said the Government is regularizing pension rights for public servants recruited since 2016, arguing that the previous contributory pension clauses were never operationalized. Debate: Committee Stage - Appropriation Bill 2026, Special Spending Units (Heads 1, 2, 4-11, 13, 16-25) InfrastructureEmploymentPublic Finance Read →
13 November 2025 AI summary Wasantha Samarasinghe, using Government time, responded to remarks by Ravi Karunanayake regarding foreign reserves. He rejected the claim that reserves had fallen to USD 4.2 billion, stating that official reserves were about USD 6.3 billion and cautioning against relying solely on a newspaper report. Debate: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Second Reading (Fifth Allotted Day) Public Finance Read →
13 November 2025 AI summary A procedural motion was moved proposing that Hon. Imran Maharoof take the Chair. The House agreed, after which Hon. (Mrs.) Sagarika Athauda left the Chair and Hon. Imran Maharoof assumed it. Debate: Appropriation Bill 2026 - Second Reading (Fifth Allotted Day) Parliamentary Procedure Read →
13 November 2025 AI summary The Minister stated that announced paddy prices include Nadu at Rs. 1,208, Samba at Rs. 1,258 and Keeri Samba at Rs. 1,328 per 5 kg, with a possible Keeri Samba revision to be discussed with the Minister of Agriculture on the 25th. He said Keeri Samba shortages stem from demand exceeding production, some stock aggregation by large millers, and black-market activity, and that the Government is importing GR-11 and Ponni/Chiru Samba as substitutes. He added that Keeri Samba cultivation under the Yaya 500 programme must increase from about 35,000–37,000 hectares to at least 50,000 hectares per season, and that instructions have been given to expand cultivation in assured-water areas. Private Notice Question: Paddy Prices and Rice Imports (27(2)) AgricultureCost of Living Read →
13 November 2025 AI summary Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe stated that Sri Lanka’s annual rice requirement is about 2.7 million metric tons and that Yala 2025 production data show a surplus of Nadu but a shortfall in Keeri Samba and other Samba varieties. He said Cabinet approved imports of Ponni/GR-11 rice as substitutes for Keeri Samba after CAA and Lanka Sathosa monitoring indicated shortages, with about 63,000 metric tons imported by 13 November 2025 and controls placed on shipment timing and importer quantities. He outlined current maximum retail prices, CAA enforcement actions including raids and fines, and said government intervention is limited to addressing unaffordable prices, hoarding, or black-market practices. He also cited longer-term measures such as encouraging diversified cultivation, supporting farmers, re-establishing the Cooperative Wholesale Establishment, distributing rice through Sathosa and cooperatives, providing paddy dryers in 2026, and registering millers for oversight. Private Notice Question: Paddy Prices and Rice Imports (27(2)) Cost of LivingAgriculturePublic Finance Read →