The Hon. (Dr.) Nihal Abeysinghe

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, a short while ago an Opposition MP referred to imposing the Social Security Contribution levy on vehicles. That levy is an existing one; what is set out in this Budget is to ensure proper collection at the point of import or manufacture and sale. It is not a new tax.

¶ 02 He also spoke at length on fisheries. In this Budget, Rs. 300 million is allocated to develop infrastructure in fisheries harbours; an additional Rs. 1,000 million is provided, beyond existing provisions, to further improve facilities in fisheries anchorages; Rs. 300 million is allocated to rehabilitate selected harbours including Beruwala, Ambalangoda, Kudawella and Nilwella; Rs. 350 million for modern technology to improve fisher safety; Rs. 500 million to increase fish catch; and Rs. 100 million to use satellite imagery to identify fishing grounds. Another Rs. 100 million is to improve seed supply and quality for inland fisheries. The former State Minister for Fisheries who spoke appears not to have studied these Budget provisions; that is regrettable.

¶ 03 We have heard many Budget speeches. People always look for relief in the Budget. We presented the 2025 Budget last March after a supplementary vote in December, and now the 2026 Budget seven months later. Some senior Opposition MPs claim only 20% of the 2025 Budget has been implemented — likely because they have not reviewed implementation timelines. Development project payments are typically disbursed in November–December.

¶ 04 This morning I chaired the Horana District Coordinating Committee and received confirmation that by year-end we will complete about 95% of projects in the Horana DS Division. Opposition Members should study current implementation rather than making claims. Despite only six months for execution, we have conducted proper follow-up and will complete 95–100% of planned projects by year-end.

¶ 05 The 2026 Budget is our first full-year Budget. When we presented the 2025 Budget, our challenges were to stabilize the economy, restructure debt, regain international confidence, and protect the right to life of the most vulnerable, at a time when one in four lived below the poverty line. The whole world acknowledged that previous rulers bankrupted the country; donors stopped lending; youth emigrated; parents could not fund children’s education abroad; foreign exchange was scarce; postgraduate training stalled. We took office under those conditions.

¶ 06 We stabilized the macroeconomy, advanced IMF-aligned debt restructuring, increased fertilizer support to farmers, kerosene support to fishers, raised public sector salaries, lifted the minimum wage payable by employers to Rs. 150,000 per month for professionals’ tax calculation thresholds, increased the aswesuma benefits, and provided Rs. 6,000 for schoolbooks and Rs. 3,000 for footwear to low-income families. We restarted halted development — roads, water, electricity, irrigation, fallow paddy rehabilitation, and housing.

¶ 07 Even Opposition economists like Harsha de Silva acknowledged that the economy has been stabilized; they lauded the anti-corruption drive; they were surprised at the scale of vehicle LCs opened; and noted the Treasury surplus with deposits exceeding overdrafts at the two State banks for the first time. Hon. Kabir Hashim welcomed higher exports, a current account surplus, reduced deficit and higher revenue. Whatever is now said, the people accept that the NPP Government has put the economy on the right path to improve living standards. Thank you.