The Hon. Asoka Sapumal Ranwala

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, in this moment—days and months of 2025—the world is undergoing rapid political change. The President, as Finance Minister, has presented a Budget to prepare our citizens for that changing world. We believe this goes beyond a people‑friendly Budget toward a citizen‑centred Budget, aimed at steering our society and economy wisely.

¶ 02 For two decades, public and private sector workers and professionals lived with uncertainty over pay. Trade union leaders toiled before every Budget to secure increases through Treasury negotiations, only to end up with meagre allowances or changes to overtime ratios—without improving basic pay. Workers remained longer at their workplaces, sacrificing family life, just to make ends meet. This drove many to seek employment abroad.

¶ 03 The dignity of labour rests on a fair basic salary, with clear annual increments—globally the norm. For twenty years, basic pay was suppressed; even when concessions were offered, they came as allowances, while circulars later capped overtime hours. Workers had to fight to retain even overtime.

¶ 04 Today, this Budget raises the basic salary itself—restoring dignity. Some do not understand how this was done or its implications for status within institutions. Basic pay anchors pensions, overtime calculations, and widows’ and orphans’ funds. Therefore, increasing basic salary is the true raise. Public servants now have renewed pride. Even staff at the Members’ Dining Restaurant said they had never seen a basic salary increase like this in history.

¶ 05 This is why I call it a citizen’s Budget. It also addresses SMEs not by merely pushing loans that turn entrepreneurs into defaulters, but by nurturing viable enterprises. The National Science Foundation’s provisions have been tripled to support commercialization and innovation. Instead of loan traps, we are building pathways for sustainable SME growth.

¶ 06 On irrigation and infrastructure: previously, funds were spent merely on maintenance, leaving systems to decay. This Budget allocates dedicated funds to rehabilitate and modernize schemes like Rajangana, Minneriya, and Huruluwewa lower development works—so farmers can better meet their agricultural needs.

¶ 07 On disaster resilience: past governments looked for solutions only after floods. Living by the Kelani River, I know this well. This Budget includes, for the first time, named river projects and climate adaptation programs for the Kelani Basin: flood risk management, meteorological system upgrades, disaster preparedness and response, improved flood forecasting, and landslide forecasting—with Rs. 9 billion allocated. This is how we protect citizens proactively.