The interim Budget speech or the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill will be delivered in Parliament by President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Tuesday, August 30 in his capacity as the Minister of Finance.
This decision was taken at the meeting of the Committee on Parliamentary Business chaired by Deputy Speaker Ajith Rajapakse on August 24 to discuss the business of Parliament for the coming week.
Parliament will convene on August 30 at 1 pm and the President will present the Second Reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill following which, Parliament will be adjourned.
The debate on the Second Reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill will be held on August 31 and September 1 from 9.30 am to 5.30 pm without a lunch break.
The Second Reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill will be debated on September 2 from 9.30 am to 4.30 pm, following which the Bill is due to be passed after the Committee Stage and the Third Reading. Three Regulations under the Foreign Exchange Act, a resolution under the Customs Ordinance and Orders under the Special Commodity Levy Act are also due to be approved in Parliament on the same day. According to a motion brought by the Opposition, the adjournment debate will be held on August 29 from 9.30 am to 4.30 pm on “The difficulties faced by the general public due to the increase in the electricity tariffs by a large proportion”.