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Budget booster!December 21, 2013

•  President in Parliament tells Opposition to stop underestimating the Government’s

economic policy

• Invites !P and "!# to $oin %orces to create national economic plan %or

development and reconciliation

• &laims Opposition criticism o% Govt' borro(ings is un%air 

• )ails Govt'’s management o% budget de%icit to 3*+year lo(• 201 -udget passed (ith ./+vote ma$ority !P, "!#, P oppose

-y #sh(in )emmathagama Our obby &orrespondent

President 4ahinda 5a$apa6sa (ho visited Parliament one hour be%ore the %inal vote

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(as ta6en on the Government’s -udget %or 201 urged Opposition members to re%rain

%rom underestimating his administration’s economic policy statement and loo6 %or(ard

to the changes that (ill ta6e place in the ne7t 13 years'

"he President (ho e7pressed appreciation %or the lively debates in the )ouse over the

past month, called on all legislators to $oin %orces to create a long term national

economic plan %ocused on developing 8ri an6a'

9!ot only Government members but some Opposition members have also e7pressed

positive sentiments to(ards the -udget 201,: he said'

"he President said that !P 4P Dr' )arsha de 8ilva

(ho (as 6een on addressing %inancial issues had sho(n that reducing the budget

de%icit to /';< this year %rom .'.< as an important step' 9!e7t year the de%icit (ill be

/'2< and in 201* it (ill be %urther reduced to 3';< is also valued by him' -uilding

such consensus and agreement (ill help us to build trust,: the President said'

President 5a$apa6sa (ent on to say that the Opposition also agrees that all

governments that came into po(er since independence had maintained high budget

de%icits'

"he President said that the eader o% the Opposition had told ne(spapers that the

5a$apa6sa administration (as constantly borro(ing' 9"his is an un%air statement'

"here is a big di%%erence bet(een the governments he led and (hat (e are doing no('

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=e maintained a *< budget de%icit at least by investing money %or in%rastructure

development' -ut those governments had a high budget de%icit (ithout even

developing the in%rastructure' =e need to understand this change' =e have reduced

the national debt %rom 10< to >/< o% the GDP,: said President 5a$apa6sa'

In his speech President 5a$apa6sa also urged the "amil leaders o% the Opposition to

come together (ith the government to %ind a national solution and achieve

reconciliation'

)e emphasised the need %or all parties to act together to resolve the ethnic issue and

achieve national reconciliation'

"he President re?uested the leader o% the "amil !ational #lliance 5' 8ampanthan and

&hie% 4inister o% !orthern Province &'' ignes(aran to $oin hands (ith the

government to create national harmony' )e noted that the government’s -udget is

being passed in Parliament in parallel to the passing o% the budget o% the ne(ly

established !orthern Provincial &ouncil'

)e as6ed the opposition to correct the government’s path by presenting constructive

criticism' 8ri an6a can set an e7ample to all the other countries a%%ected by internal

con%licts' )o(ever, the President asserted that there (ill be no room %or terrorism to

resur%ace' "he third and the %inal reading o% the -udget 201 (as passed in

Parliament yesterday (ith a ma$ority o% ./ votes' 8i7ty members voted against the

-udget 201 (hile 1// voted in %avour'

"hose (ho voted against (ere main opposition !P, "amil !ational #lliance, and the

anatha imu6thi Peramuna'

4ean(hile 5euters in its report said 8ri an6a’s Parliament passed the 201 budget

by a ./+vote ma$ority on @riday, approving a plan to reduce its %iscal de%icit to a 3*+

year lo( o% /'2< o% gross domestic product amid opposition allegations o% economic

data manipulation'

"he budget (as passed (ith 1// votes %or and *0 against in the legislature in (hich

President 4ahinda 5a$apa6sa’s ruling party has a more than a t(o+thirds ma$ority'

5a$apa6sa, (rapping up the 2+day budget debate, said 8ri an6a’s debt+to+GDP ratio

had no( declined to >/< %rom around ;0< last year'"he island nation aims to reduce the debt to */< o% GDP by 201*'"he Government

aims to cut the 201 %iscal de%icit to an ambitious /'2< o% GDP, its lo(est since 1.>>,

%rom an estimated /';< this year, the level the Government committed to the

International 4onetary @und AI4@B, (hich %ully disbursed a C 2'* billion loan in uly last

year'

"hroughout the budget debate, opposition legislators claimed that the Government

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has been manipulating economic data to sho( a rosy picture o% the island nation’s C

/. billion economy'

5a$apa6sa’s ruling party re$ected the allegation'

"he island nation targets over >'/< annual economic gro(th in each o% the ne7t three

years %rom this year’s revised do(n target o% a minimum >'2<'