The Hon. Dharmapriya Dissanayake
Hon. Dharmapriya Dissanayake said the Government had granted a phased 66 per cent public sector salary increase, which would also raise linked pensions, and argued that pension protections had been secured despite earlier attempts to curtail them. He stated that recruitment freezes since 2020 had caused major staffing shortages in sectors such as teaching, policing and administration, and said the Government would undertake large-scale recruitment to strengthen the public service. He also claimed private sector wages were rising alongside public salaries and linked these measures to the Government’s broader economic recovery efforts and the 2026 Budget.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, when discussing this Ministry’s Heads, we must note that last year we granted a substantial public sector pay increase—66%—phased as 30% in 2025, then 35% in 2026 and 35% in 2027 onto the basic, creating a satisfied public service. Pensioners’ pensions, being linked to basic, will also rise accordingly. Those who once tried to curtail pensions in 2008 and 2016 now criticize; yet thanks to actions including cases led by trade unions and Mahinda Jayasinghe, pensions were protected.
¶ 02 Since 2020, recruitments were frozen, creating acute shortages—over 50,000 teachers short; many police stations at half strength; essential subject teachers missing; many officials lacking. This Government will recruit large numbers—including under our Ministry—to strengthen public service, as many will retire soon.
¶ 03 Private sector wages are also rising in tandem with public sector increases. Within a year in office, we have delivered a satisfied public and private workforce, created jobs, and turned around a deeply corrupt, collapsed State. Even Opposition Members now concede the country’s improvement. With the 2026 Budget, we will build a better future.
¶ 04 Thank you.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Wednesday, 19 November 2025 ·No. 22931 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Dharmapriya Dissanayake. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 19 November 2025. No. 22931. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/14198