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Sri Lanka
10th Parliament· 154 sittings on record · 30,475 speeches · latest 10 June 2026

Sitting of Friday, 11 July 2025

10th Parliament· 13 debates· 219 speeches· 53 speakers

Source: Hansard PDF (parliament.lk) ↗ ·No. 1753082553092748 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard

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Order of business

Speeches load per item. Summaries shown here are AI-generated and labelled; verbatim text is on each speech page.

  4. 4 Oral question Oral Questions - First Round 18 speeches
    • The Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri SJB

      AI summary Chaminda Wijesiri said that, although the Commission Report has already been tabled, it should be provided to MPs on request and used to ensure truth and accountability regarding the Easter attacks. He questioned whether allegations involving then Deputy Minister Aruna Jayasekara, state intelligence officers, and a state officer reportedly mentioned by the President to the Cardinal had been investigated or included in the Report. He asked the Prime Minister to assure Parliament that these matters would be investigated transparently and without delay.

      Corruption & Governance ReformJustice & Human Rights Full speech →
    • The Hon. (Dr.) Harini Amarasuriya - Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education JJB

      AI summary The Prime Minister responded that a recent debate had already addressed the matter and that the 2021 PCoI Report has been available in Parliament since 2021. She said the Government cannot redo past investigations but is proceeding on the basis of newly emerged facts, with ongoing investigations to be reported to Parliament and the public when appropriate.

      Justice & Human Rights Full speech →
    • The Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe - Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development JJB

      AI summary The Minister stated that Rs. 373 million from the Mahapola Higher Education Scholarship Trust Fund was used to construct SLIIT buildings, but several requested details were unavailable and are being sought. He said a 2017 Cabinet decision and Gazette recognized SLIIT as an autonomous non-governmental institution not coming under any Ministry, limiting the Ministry’s present ability to act. In response to supplementary questions, he alleged irregularities in the transfer of control of SLIIT from Mahapola, noted that Rs. 408 million was repaid using SLIIT’s own retained earnings, and said COPE had recommended legal action. He indicated that steps are being taken to pursue accountability, restore Mahapola’s trusteeship and ownership of SLIIT, and use its income to support scholarships and affordable education programmes.

      Public FinanceCorruption & Governance ReformEducation Full speech →
    • The Hon. Sunil Rathnasiri JJB

      AI summary Hon. Sunil Rathnasiri outlined the origins of Mahapola’s investment in SLIIT and cited the 2003 and 2005 agreements that gave Mahapola profit-sharing, director appointments, and approval rights. He argued that the 2015 agreement improperly transferred extensive control over state land and assets to SLIIT while limiting Mahapola’s role and undercompensating it relative to SLIIT’s profits. Referring to findings of a Presidential Special Commission, he asked what action the present Minister would take against the individuals identified as responsible.

      EducationPublic FinanceCorruption & Governance Reform Full speech →
    • The Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe - Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development JJB

      AI summary Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe said the 2017 handling of SLIIT under the 2015–2019 UNP Government ignored Presidential Commission observations and that the Cabinet at the time bore collective responsibility. He argued that the Rs. 408 million repayment was made from SLIIT funds that belonged to Mahapola, amounting to a serious offence. He said, following COPE recommendations, legal action is being pursued through the CID and Bribery Commission to restore Mahapola’s trusteeship and ownership while retaining SLIIT as an institution, expanding scholarships, and keeping programmes affordable.

      Corruption & Governance ReformPublic FinanceEducation Full speech →
    • The Hon. Mayilvaganam Jegatheeswaran JJB

      AI summary Asked the Minister to provide detailed information on approved staffing cadres for government regional hospitals in Vavuniya, Mannar and Mullaitivu, including required staff by post, the number and names of hospitals, and whether permanently appointed nurses are actually serving at those institutions. He further requested reasons and proposed remedies where nurses are not serving, and sought confirmation on whether Puthukudiyiruppu Regional Hospital in Mullaitivu has been upgraded to a base hospital, the date of upgrade, and its approved and current staffing by position.

      Public FinanceHealthcare Full speech →
    • The Hon. Deputy Speaker procedural
      Full speech →
    • The Hon. Mayilvaganam Jegatheeswaran JJB

      AI summary Mayilvaganam Jegatheeswaran raised a supplementary question regarding voluntary Health Service Assistants in Northern Province hospitals who received appointment letters from the Provincial Ministry of Health in 2019 but were not allowed to assume duties. He asked whether they can now be granted appointments and why the original appointments were not implemented, and tabled a copy of the relevant letter.

      HealthcareEmployment Full speech →
    • The Hon. (Dr.) Nalinda Jayatissa JJB

      AI summary Approval has been granted to recruit an additional 1,990 Health Service Committee employees to address shortages in the health sector. Future recruitment will be based on hospital-level vacancies and aimed at distributing staff across the country, correcting past recruitment patterns that drew from limited localities and restricted deployment. The Minister stated that service already rendered by workers in understaffed institutions, including in the North and at Jaffna Teaching Hospital, will be considered, but appointments will still depend on age, educational and other eligibility criteria.

      EmploymentHealthcare Full speech →
    • The Hon. Mayilvaganam Jegatheeswaran JJB

      AI summary Mayilvaganam Jegatheeswaran thanked the Minister for appointing an obstetrician to Cheddikulam Hospital in Vavuniya and raised concerns about continuing staffing and facility shortages in the underdeveloped rural area. He asked when a Judicial Medical Officer and In-charge Medical Officer would be appointed, and when the non-functioning operating theatre would be cleaned and handed over for use by the appointed surgeon.

      Healthcare Full speech →
    • The Hon. (Dr.) Nalinda Jayatissa JJB

      AI summary The Minister said hospital upgrades, including divisional hospitals being named base hospitals, create specialist cadre requirements, but the health system currently faces a shortage of specialists. He stated that priority is being given to filling vacancies at Vavuniya and Mannar District General Hospitals, noting that most specialists at Mannar are due to go for overseas training and board-certified replacements are not yet available. Specialists will be allocated to “A” or “B” category base hospitals later, depending on the number completing training and returning.

      Healthcare Full speech →
    • The Hon. (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne (Ms.) JJB

      AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne raised concerns about job losses in aluminium-related industries in Kaduwela, stating that 3,000 to 4,000 family members are affected by the current crisis. She asked the Deputy Minister whether the Government will enforce the legal requirement of 35% value addition for raw material exports, alleging that aluminium blocks are being exported without regulation despite complaints to the Ministry of Industries.

      EmploymentPublic Finance Full speech →
    • The Hon. Chathuranga Abeysinghe - Deputy Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development JJB

      AI summary The Deputy Minister said the Ministry had identified new metal-based export categories allegedly used to bypass existing HS code restrictions, including items described as shoe components, flower vases or ornaments. He stated that additional HS codes were proposed to the Ministry of Finance in February, referred to the Attorney-General’s Department in March, and followed up on 1 July, with approval expected within about a month. He added that the Ministry, Customs and the Industrial Development Board would coordinate notices, checks and verification of value addition before such exports are permitted.

      Public FinanceInfrastructure Full speech →
    • The Hon. (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne (Ms.) JJB

      AI summary Hon. (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyarathne asked what measures would be taken to ensure an orderly and adequate supply of aluminium raw materials to small and medium domestic manufacturers producing items such as cookware for the local market. She also requested a clear contact point for follow-up on the issue.

      Public FinanceEmployment Full speech →
    • The Hon. Chathuranga Abeysinghe - Deputy Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development JJB

      AI summary The Deputy Minister said the Industrial Development Board and a dedicated Ministry unit handle scrap supply, but the IDB lacks capacity to procure and process enough scrap to meet demand. He noted that government institutions have been directed to provide scrap to the IDB, though practical difficulties remain, and said the immediate approach is to improve open-market availability to help reduce prices.

      EmploymentInfrastructure Full speech →
    • The Hon. M.S. Uthumalebbe SLMC

      AI summary M.S. Uthumalebbe raised concerns about repeated flooding from the Thoppikuda major canal in the Irakkamam Divisional Secretariat area, affecting paddy lands across Samanthurai, Nintavur, Deegawapi, Oluvil, Palamunai, Addalaichenai, and Akkaraipattu. He asked whether a special team of senior Irrigation Department officials would be appointed to expedite a permanent solution, noting that temporary measures have failed to prevent recurring losses during rainy seasons.

      AgricultureInfrastructure Full speech →
    • The Hon. (Dr.) Susil Ranasinghe - Deputy Minister of Land and Irrigation JJB

      AI summary The Deputy Minister said embankments on the southern bank of the Gal Oya had weakened due to paddy cultivation up to the riverbank, contributing to flooding during the last Maha season. He stated that around 250 metres of permanent embankment stabilization using earthworks, with Rs. 111 million allocated, had commenced, and that additional work over about four kilometres near the anicut was also funded and under way in line with technical recommendations.

      AgricultureInfrastructureLand & Housing Full speech →
    • The Hon. M.S. Uthumalebbe SLMC

      AI summary Hon. M.S. Uthumalebbe made a brief intervention expressing thanks. No substantive policy issue, proposal, or question was raised in the speech.

      Parliamentary Procedure Full speech →