The Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe - Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, Hon. Srineshan stated that they will not oppose this Budget now and will watch how we address especially war-affected regions. I point out that funds have been allocated countrywide—including North and East—for roads, hospitals, schools, and, with the President’s focus, for building 70,000 houses. A special project to build homes for 2,500 families in the North and East who have lacked housing 16 years after the war is funded. We see the North and East as home to our own brothers and sisters, and aim for unified national development.

¶ 02 Turning to points by the Leader of the Opposition: he referred to a court case filed by our unions. Yes, teachers’ unions filed it to secure pension rights related to the 1997 B.C. Perera Pay Commission recommendations. The 2022 increases are being paid to retirees prospectively; but those who retired between 1997 and 2021 do not receive pension adjustments aligned to that recommendation. The case—listed on 24 November—seeks that relief. Separately, through the 2025 Budget we have proposed measures to resolve a large share of pension anomalies; further measures will follow.

¶ 03 For 2026 we have appointed a Pay Commission to resolve disparities across scales and grades for serving officers and retirees. These issues are not new, yet the Opposition Leader speaks as if they are.

¶ 04 He also alleged politicization of “Community Power,” youth societies, farmers’ societies, funeral aid societies—claiming these build JVP unions. Incorrect. These are government programs implemented through ministries, not party structures. When recruiting to the public service or implementing programs, we do not ask party affiliation. In contrast, we remember public “height tests” under a tree—sending tall to security and short to labour—viral videos from his tenure.

¶ 05 He questioned deficit reduction via spending cuts and revenue measures, as if both were wrong. To reduce the budget gap, we must both cut non-essential spending and increase revenue. He implies taxation is the only tool; not so. In our 2026 Budget we show how to broaden revenue without arbitrary burden.

¶ 06 On VAT threshold reduction from Rs. 60 million to Rs. 36 million (daily turnover proxy ~Rs. 166,000 down to ~Rs. 100,000): VAT is collected once along the value chain and is creditable; retailers pay VAT only on their value added (their margin), not on the full shelf price. Expanding the VAT net addresses evasion by intermediaries and improves compliance; it does not impose VAT on the full retail price at every step.

¶ 07 It was said yesterday the Opposition Leader was not allowed to speak; he sought to intervene to exploit a complaint to the Bribery/Corruption Commission regarding the Rs. 200 daily allowance for plantation workers. Several Opposition MPs—representing plantation communities—voted for the Budget and supported that allowance, refuting his position.

¶ 08 On contributory pensions: in 2016, under the then government, appointments were issued with contributory pension clauses but without creating a contributory fund or collection mechanism—effectively suspending the defined pension without operationalizing the contributory scheme. We ask the Opposition: how much was collected to such a fund since 2016? None. Therefore, in the 2026 Budget, the President proposed measures to regularize and grant pension rights to all recruited since 2016 under those letters. It is this government that is restoring those rights.