UNP to oppose SL government budget

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 November 2004, 05:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) decided Thursday evening to oppose the maiden budget of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government, UNP sources said.

The UPFA ousted the UNP from power in the general election held on April 2 this year.

Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, UNP leader and a former Prime Minister, told his party members in a discussion held after the budget speech that the UPFA government had failed to fulfill its promises given to the masses in the April 2nd general election through its budget, sources said.

The parliament, adjourned Thursday around 8.20 p.m. after a marathon six hour budget speech delivered by Finance Minister Dr.Sarath Amunugama, will begin its general debate on the budget proposals Friday morning, parliamentary sources said.

Meanwhile, the Secretary General of Parliament requested all political parties represented in the legislative body to submit their amendments to the budget on November 23, to be tabled when parliament is to begin committee stage debate on the budget later, sources said.

In his budget speech, the Finance Minister announced a salary increase for public servants in two stages, increase of pensions to pensioners, filling the vacancies existing in the public sector by appointing 30,000 GCE A/L qualified youths and giving permanent appointments to about forty thousand graduates who are currently undergoing professional training in various centres in the country under the graduate employment scheme, sources said.