The Hon. Bimal Rathnayake

Jathika Jana balawegaya· National List· 19 March 2026 ·Oral question: Oral Question: Department of Motor Traffic: Registration of Vehicles (Q.1822/2026)

Public Finance

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Bimal Rathnayake stated that decisions on the matter rest with the Ministry of Finance but argued that the proposed concession should not be granted. He said many people had already paid taxes and dues despite hardship, the sums involved were not large, and in the absence of a wartime emergency, the Government should act fairly by collecting revenue and providing services. As Minister of Transport, he said he did not endorse the concession.

Verbatim record (translated)

Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English

¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, that responsibility lies entirely with the Ministry of Finance. However, it should not and cannot be done. Many people paid taxes and dues under hardship; moreover, the amounts are not very large. Unless there is a wartime emergency in a region, which is not the case, we must be fair—collect revenue and also fairly return services. Therefore, as Minister of Transport, I do not endorse such a concession.

Provenance

Source: Hansard, Thursday, 19 March 2026 ·No. 23381 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Permalink: /lk/speeches/30120

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Cite as: The Hon. Bimal Rathnayake. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 19 March 2026. No. 23381. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/30120