The Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri
Chaminda Wijesiri argued that any suspension of Standing Orders must be done by Parliament, not solely by a Party Leaders’ meeting, and should follow the correct provision, citing Standing Order 138 rather than 111. He said the Opposition does not dispute agreements reached among party leaders but insisted that where Standing Orders require parliamentary approval, such as in proceeding with a Vote on Account without a Budget, that approval must be obtained. He urged the Speaker and Leader of the House to act constitutionally and in compliance with parliamentary procedure.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Leader of the House, you have treated us fairly thus far. Suspension of Standing Orders should be under SO 138, not 111. While we do not challenge decisions made at the Party Leaders’ meeting, where Standing Orders require, parliamentary approval must be obtained. For instance, if proceeding with a Vote on Account without the Budget, and if that deviates from Standing Orders, what is the position? We do not challenge the consensuses at Party Leaders’ meetings, Hon. Speaker.
¶ 02 However, the Standing Orders are clear. They cannot be suspended at a Party Leaders’ meeting; only Parliament can suspend them. You are empowered to act constitutionally and in accordance with Standing Orders. We fully support that, but please do not breach them. If everything can be done merely by a Party Leaders’ decision, I cannot agree, Hon. Speaker.
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Tuesday, 3 December 2024 ·No. 1733459564028450 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 3 December 2024. No. 1733459564028450. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/29756