The Hon. (Prof.) A.H.M.H. Abayarathna — Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government
In response to a parliamentary question, the Minister provided the expiry dates of all Provincial Councils and stated that, under Section 7 of the Provincial Councils Act, No. 42 of 1987, Chairmen remain in office until the first meeting of the next Council even after dissolution. He tabled expenditure details for Chairmen from 2021 to 2025, covering salaries and allowances, and noted that North Central Province has no Chairman due to the former Chairman’s death. He also said the Act does not specify post-dissolution functions for Chairmen and that Governors and their staff are currently carrying out provincial functions without hindrance.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, the answers are as follows.
¶ 02 1. Dates of expiry of terms: - Northern Province: 2018.10.24 - Southern Province: 2019.04.09 - Eastern Province: 2017.09.30 - Central Province: 2018.10.08 - North Western Province: 2018.10.10 - North Central Province: 2017.10.01 - Sabaragamuwa Province: 2017.09.26 - Western Province: 2019.04.21 - Uva Province: 2019.10.08
¶ 03 2. Under section 7 of the Provincial Councils Act, No. 42 of 1987, even upon dissolution, the Chairman continues in office until the first meeting of the next Council; therefore, Chairmen remain in office on that basis.
¶ 04 3. Detailed breakdowns are tabled. To summarize selected totals (salaries, overtime, fuel, telephone and other allowances) for 2021–2025: - Western Province: Rs. 40.06 million - Southern Province: Rs. 49.04 million - Central Province: Rs. 40.45 million - Uva Province: Rs. 41.90 million - Northern Province: Rs. 21.57 million - Eastern Province: Rs. 50.64 million - North Western Province: Rs. 48.50 million - Sabaragamuwa Province: Rs. 40.73 million - North Central Province: Nil (Chairman deceased)
¶ 05 4. The Act states the Chairman continues until the first meeting of the new Council; it does not specify particular functions post-dissolution.
¶ 06 5. North Central Province currently has no Chairman due to the Chairman’s demise.
¶ 07 6. There is no current operational issue; Governors and their staff are carrying out functions without hindrance.
¶ 08 Thank you, Hon. Presiding Member.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 5 February 2026 ·No. 23269 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Prof.) A.H.M.H. Abayarathna — Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 5 February 2026. No. 23269. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/13141