The Hon. (Dr.) Harsha de Silva

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, our friend, Hon. Deputy Minister Sunil Watagala, said we should not ask about vehicles like we ask about onions and rice. We can ask the price of rice, whether there is salt, etc., but let us not fall into that. We must debate logically.

¶ 02 Let us talk about his flight analogy. Unlike a bus, you cannot get off; you must tighten your seatbelt until the end. But the same Deputy Minister said no country got out through the IMF. That means this flight never reaches the destination. If you know that, why sit on it? Either jump with a parachute or divert and land somewhere safe. There is no issue; let us land somewhere.

¶ 03 Many have spoken on vehicles, so I will not. But on increasing tax on EVs: the Deputy Minister explained their policy — that is their stance. But the public’s question is fair: why increase EV taxes now? Do not blame them for asking, because they expected something else. A minister said a Toyota Vitz would be given at a reduced price; then why raise more taxes? People ask because you promised. Similarly, you said you would bring Japanese motorcycles for our youth. Those expectations drive these questions.

¶ 04 Another issue: we learned some importers take a vehicle from one country, deregister it there, then export it to Sri Lanka as brand‑new from that country. When imported here, VAT and Luxury Tax are charged on 85 percent of the sales price per rule; if the transaction value exceeds 85 percent, VAT is on the transaction value. But nobody shows more than 85 percent. Then due revenue is lost and money flows out through manipulation. At COPF we requested a report on this to see whether the full revenue can be collected.

¶ 05 On electricity tariffs: in the morning I said there is no need to raise 18 percent; 7–8 percent could suffice. Yet it is being abused. Your Government has requested an 18.3 percent increase from next month. But you promised 33 percent reduction; now you seek an 18.3 percent increase. They cite generation, transmission and distribution costs from June to December totalling Rs. 276 billion, with revenue of Rs. 230 billion and a Q1 loss of Rs. 8 billion, plus legacy debt not for assets but working capital. The cause is that, for a period, many argued prices should reflect costs, but unions and political groups fought to keep prices artificially low, causing huge losses. They now want to recover Rs. 14.1 billion of legacy debt in the next tariff round — hence the 18 percent request. Several fundamental problems arise.