The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake

¶ 01 I said “all-party” and the time ended right there. Please give me two more minutes, Hon. Deputy Chairperson. I will obtain that time from Hon. Gayanta Karunathilaka.

¶ 02 Likewise on Labour GSP: the good governance government brought it back. So those who demonize the GSP are wrong. We must protect Labour GSP. Also, this Government has proposed to pay Rs. 15,000 to public servants over three years, and as per yesterday’s Cabinet decision, Rs. 12,500 to the private sector within one year. How is this to be done? Government takes three years to pay Rs. 15,000, but asks the private sector to pay Rs. 12,500 in one year. Even that is insufficient, but the private sector now cannot afford it. Remember, it was the UNP that built and defended our apparel industry, the free trade zones, Labour GSP, and exports out of the Port of Colombo — Lalith Athulathmudali brought many of these under the UNP. Instead of vilifying, use these strengths and move forward. Also, when delivering subsidies, remember this: in our country, out of 5.6 million families, 2.3 million receive assistance.

¶ 03 Today’s papers report that of the people who should receive benefits, 58% have not received them, while 28% who should not receive have received them. How are we doing this? Please, let us do a proper clean-up, lift the poor up, and end poverty. Thank you.