Appropriation Bill Before Parliament Today

The Appropriation Bill (2018) is to be presented by Minister of Finance Mangala Samaraweera to Parliament today (9), the Speaker’s office stated yesterday.

Minister Samaraweera is expected to deliver the Budget speech on 9 November and the second reading of
the 2018 Appropriation Bill scheduled for the 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 of November in Parliament. The Committee stage debate will begin from 16 November and will carry on till the final reading and division vote, which will be taken up in Parliament on 9 December.

The projected budget deficit for 2018 will be a little over Rs 1,800 billion, Co-Cabinet Spokesman Minister
Dayasiri Jayasekera said a few weeks ago. He added that this sum would have to be obtained as loans
from local and international sources.

The Finance Ministry has estimated the total Government expenditure for 2018 to be Rs 3,982 billion and
the expected total Government income to be Rs 2,175 billion.

”The capital expenditure of the Government is Rs 668 billion and the recurrent expenditure is estimated
at Rs 1,308 billion. The Government has to allocate Rs 2,005.1 billion for expenses that it has to bear for
debt repayment etc”,  Jayasekera said.