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| Tuesday, 02 November 2004 |
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Politics | |
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| CPSL, LSSP budget proposals based on three main principles The joint budget proposals for 2005 submitted by the Communist Party of Sri Lanka and the LSSP for consideration by the Finance Minister and the government are based on three main principles. They are safeguarding UPFA social base and fulfilment of election pledges including the granting of a public sector salary increase, ensuring equitable distribution of income and assets and strengthening the economy through equitable development of all government sectors and the provinces. Constitutional Reforms and National Integration Minister and Communist Party General Secretary D. E. W. Gunasekera said the proposals which paid special attention to the galloping cost of living problem caused by the daily escalation and manipulation of prices consequent to the introduction of the free market economy in 1977 by the UNP has recommended immediate and long term measures through the budget to curtail it. The CP and the LSSP proposed that essential items such as sugar, milk food, rice, dhal, green gram chillies, onions, potatoes, dried fish and sprats and kerosene should be exempted from VAT. The government should intervene to check the private racket of price fixing and hand over the import and distribution of essential food items to the CWE and the cooperative sector. The Paddy Marketing Board including its stores complex and the Marketing Department should be reactivated and monies should be allocated for research on measures to prevent wastage in storing, transport and distribution of rice, fruits, vegetables and other commodities. This would enable the government to offer a fair price to farmers and make goods available to consumers at reasonable prices, the proposals pointed out. Mr. Gunasekera said in order to reduce transport costs and bus fares the two parties recommended a complete re-organisation of the CTB with a centralised management system and the development of the Railway Department under a proper management. Other salient features of the proposals are that alternate measures should be made to increase government revenue which would suffer a set back due to exemption of VAT and other measures. Therefore the proposals highlighted the need to net in more taxable people into the tax net with public assistance, raise the tax limit from 30 to 40 percent and increase the adjustment upper limit by 10 per cent. The three per cent duty on luxury items should be increased to 30 per cent and a sales tax should also be imposed on them to prevent the flood of such items into the country. The CP and the LSSP also proposed that the present 100 per allowance for advertising granted in the computation of profits should be reduced to 25 per cent. Furthermore all tax payers should be made to declare their assets and liabilities. The proposals also noted that the income tax exemption on jewellery, gold and gem exports has given total tax exemption to the entire Sea Street. It recommended that guest houses and restaurants be required to register themselves with the Sri Lanka Tourist Board and pay an annual permit tax. The so-called loans taken by directors of private and limited liability companies are never paid back. They are later written off as bad debts. This practice should be prohibited. In the sphere of subsidies the CP and the LSSP recommended the setting up of a fuel coupon scheme to offer fuel at concessionary prices for buses, trains and lorries to cut down transport costs. The Samurdhi Scheme should be re-organised to exclude those who don't need subsidies and include more people who are genuinely in need of help. The two parties have also suggested that more incentives should be granted to local producers, taxes on raw material imports for local industries should be reduced at least for a given period and tax incentives should be granted to small and medium scale industries. |
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