The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake

¶ 01 I am aware, Hon. Presiding Member.

¶ 02 We will need to repay the macro-linked bonds in two years. Minister Sunil Handunnetti and four other Ministers are in the House today. If your reserves are not adequate, there will be doubts regarding these macro-linked bonds, Hon. Minister Handunnetti. When doubts arise, and if there is an outflow of capital, the rupee will begin to fluctuate. Once the rupee starts to fluctuate, it will push cost-push inflation.

¶ 03 When you took over the Government, the dollar was at Rs. 297; today it is Rs. 302–303. If this keeps widening and the rupee depreciates against the dollar, the country’s expenditure will increase by Rs. 55 billion. Likewise, a one percentage point change in interest rates implies a Rs. 160 billion variance. That is why we need to discuss the way forward. It is not good for us to become like Nepal, Bangladesh, or Indonesia.

¶ 04 Also, we hear about the closure of 33 state entities. I appreciate that. I commend the Government at this juncture. When we proposed this earlier, you clung to CBSL’s coattails. It is good that you now understand. We on this side do not cling to anyone’s coattails. What we said then — and what should have been done then — you are at least doing now.

¶ 05 How do we improve efficiency in a 1.6 million-strong public service? It is not about sending people home; it is about increasing productivity. With current pay not sufficient to live on, how do we enhance productivity? Duminda Hulangamuwa said then that a 1.6 million public service should be brought down to 800,000. That is the DOB path. If that is now your policy, we will not cling to anyone’s coattails again. But if you go that route, how will you ensure productivity?

¶ 06 There are 454 state enterprises. Five of them — SriLankan Airlines, the CEB, Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, SLTB, and the National Water Supply and Drainage Board — account for 80% of state indebtedness.