No change in November 8 date

Budget on schedule

by Uditha Kumarasinghe and Manjula Fernando

Cabinet Spokesman Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva yesterday declared that the Government will definitely present Budget 2006 on November 8 as planned.

The Government has a clear majority in Parliament with parties aligned with the SLFP to pass the budget, the Minister told the weekly Cabinet press briefing yesterday.

He said the Cabinet approved a memorandum by Finance and Planning Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama to revise the Parliamentary programme for budget debate.

"Therefore there is no change in the set date and the Government will definitely bring the budget on November 8." He said the second reading of the Appropriation Bill is fixed on November 8.

The second reading debate has been fixed on November 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28 and 29. The second reading division will take place on November 29 at 6.00 p.m.

The Committee Stage will commence on November 30 and will end on December on 22 where the third reading division will take place at 6.00 p.m.

"We are quite confident that our Presidential candidate Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse will win the election and thereafter we will go through the second reading of the debate and the committee stage as we have a clear majority in Parliament," the Minister said.

Earlier, the Leader of the Opposition had expressed his party's objection with regard to the proposed presentation of the budget by the Government one week before the Presidential Election.

The President informed him that the Cabinet has made a decision to present the budget on November 8.