Ranil to present mini-Budget today

President and Finance Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will present a mini-Budget today by way of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill to amend Appropriation Act No. 30 of 2021 when Parliament convenes at 1.00 p.m.

The President is to present the second reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill following which, the Parliament will be adjourned.

With expenditure and borrowing limits increased to offer relief to people and address other priority needs, Wickremesinghe is expected to announce several new revenue measures today.  

The debate on the second reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill will be held tomorrow and Thursday from 9.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. On 2 September, from 9.30 a.m. to 4.30 p.m., the second reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill will be debated, following which the Bill is scheduled to be passed after the committee stage and the third reading.

The relevant Appropriation Bill was first presented by the former Minister Basil Rajapaksa, who was the Minister of Finance at the time, was passed in Parliament following a debate held on the Bill presented for the purpose of providing necessary service expenses and arrangements for the fiscal year 2022.

After Wickremesinghe assumed the Office of the President, the Parliament prorogued on the 28 July 2022 and the third session of the Ninth Parliament was declared open on 3 August 2022. President while presenting his Government’s policy statement, said that he will present a new budget.

As a result, this Appropriation Bill for the remainder of the 2022 fiscal year as a new Government is presented to Parliament as an amendment to the previously presented Appropriation Bill. Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, on behalf of the Minister of Finance, presented the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill to amend the Appropriation Act No. 30 of 2021 to the Parliament for the first reading on 9 August 2022.

According to the Act, referred to in Sub‐section (1) of Section 2 of the Appropriation Act No. 30 of 2021, instead of the words “rupees two thousand seven hundred ninety‐six billion four hundred forty‐six million five hundred fifty‐eight thousand” (Rs. 2,796, 446,558,000), the words “rupees three thousand two hundred seventy‐five billion eight hundred seventy‐six million five hundred fifty‐eight thousand” (Rs. 3,275,876,558,000) have been substituted.

According to the previously presented Appropriation Bill, an amount of Rs. 2,796.4 billion was estimated for the 2022 fiscal year from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2022. According to the new amendment, for the year 2022, the amount allocated to bear the Ministerial Service Expenses of the Government, the estimated amount has increased to Rs. 3,275.8 billion and accordingly the expenditure required for the Ministerial Service activities has increased by Rs. 929.4 billion by the substitution in paragraph (b) of that subsection, for the words “shall not exceed rupees three thousand two hundred billion” (Rs. 3,200 billion), of the words “shall not exceed rupees four thousand eighty‐two billion” (Rs. 4,082).

For the financial year 2022, the credit amount obtained from within or outside of Sri Lanka will be increased from Rs. 3,200 billion to Rs. 4,082 billion. Accordingly, subject to the approval of the Parliament, the borrowing limit of the Government is increased by about Rs. 892 billion.

In Section 2 Sub-section (4) of Appropriation Act No. 30 of 2021, the words “rupees two

thousand six hundred twenty‐three billion one hundred twenty‐three million four hundred

forty‐two thousand” (Rs. 2,623 billion), has been substituted by the words “rupees two

thousand nine hundred one billion one hundred twenty‐three million four hundred forty two thousand” (Rs. 2,901 million).  

With the amendment of this Sub‐section 4, the estimated expenditure of the Government’s estimated cost or debt servicing cost authorised by law to be an expense to the Consolidated Fund has been given the space to be increased from Rs. 2,623 billion to Rs. 2,901.