The Hon. D.V. Chanaka

¶ 01 We shall see, Minister, because only 50 percent was implemented last year—so first ask Ministers to speak less and deliver more.

¶ 02 The Minister claimed this is the first Budget without taxes; the President too said a month earlier there would be no new taxes. Yet the Estimates show Rs. 150 billion expected from levy increases. Maintaining VAT at 18 percent and expanding its scope increases the burden. Lowering the VAT threshold from Rs. 60 million to Rs. 36 million brings even small businesses doing Rs. 1 lakh a day into VAT.

¶ 03 VAT is not Income Tax; it is an indirect tax borne by consumers. This Government is taxing the village grocery, the small restaurant, and tiny enterprises—contrary to its promise to shift from indirect to direct taxes. You are hiding the blow—keeping rates while widening the net.

¶ 04 On vehicles: the Prime Minister should be here. You claim to have stopped permits. What permits existed over the last five years to stop? If the PM were here, I would ask whether Harini Amarasuriya received a permit in 2020—and if so, whether she used it. I would ask Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Vijitha Herath the same. Gotabaya Rajapaksa stopped MP permits in 2020—but permitted doctors, senior security officers, senior public administrators, and engineers. There is nothing now to “stop”. I was here in 2020; no MP received permits then. During the campaign you promised to restore permits to doctors, engineers, and executive officers. Now the President says politicians do not need permits—we agree. But you also scrapped executive permits, contrary to your promise.

¶ 05 There are about 22 doctors in this House, including Deputy Minister Hansaka Wijemuni. Some 20,000 previously issued permits still exist—mostly for professionals, not politicians. The issue is that, unlike Divisional Secretaries and District Secretaries who get official vehicles, doctors—who must rush to emergencies—do not. You plan to import 1,700 vehicles—at least prioritize doctors before allocating to 225 MPs. You deceived executives, security officers, doctors, engineers, and SLAS officers; this Budget reflects that deception.

¶ 06 On tenders: an international tender must be open 42 days. A common allegation is tailoring specifications for a single company. Here, you set engine capacity 2,500–3,000 cc—eliminating two main firms whose models are 2,400 cc. Then you require three service centers outside Colombo older than 10 years—criteria that fit one company. The tender seems tailored to one vendor—to skim Rs. 1.7 million per cab across 1,700 vehicles. Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has not tendered urgently needed machines—but this cab tender was rushed.

¶ 07 On salaries: the nominal increase for the lowest grade is Rs. 56,145, but adjusted for inflation, the real purchasing power is about Rs. 28,970, per our Parliament Research Division. Moreover, the Department of Census and Statistics has not conducted the Household Income and Expenditure Survey for three years. Without it, policymaking is blind. We urge that it be conducted urgently; the Research Division has repeatedly flagged this.