Over Rs. 80m lost on car permits for public servants and MPs -
Ravi
by Shirajiv Sirimane
The increased tax on vehicles and emissions tax on vehicles will only
affect about 2% of Sri Lankans and a decision was taken to curtail the
import bill, Minister of Finance, Finance Ravi Karunanayake told the
CIMA Budget Highlights Forum at the Kingsbury on Friday.
He said over Rs. 80 million is lost through car permits given to
public servants and Members of Parliament. “We have to take some
decisions that may be not be to the liking of a few people,” the
Minister said.He said that said the Budget specially focused on
providing two benefits and opportunities to the masses and the private
sector. “We want the private sector to be more competitive and play a
bigger role in economic development.”
Minister Karunanayake said the new government inherited a lot of debt
servicing from the previous government - a staggering US $ 280 billion
which is 2.2% of the GDP. All rating agencies say that Sri Lanka’s debt
to GDP is one of the highest in the world and the government has to
introduce some measures to narrow this. He said that he hopes that these
decisions would also help to check the import (US $19 million) export
(US $ 11 billion) gap. The government has opened new sectors, permitting
foreign investors with or without local collaboration to invest in our
economy rather than investing elsewhere.
For those who maintain deposits in foreign countries with returns of
less than 1%, Sri Lanka will offer 3% for their investments.
“This will create a win-win situation for both parties. If Sri Lanka
has to borrow from other sources it will have to pay more. Therefore,
it’s cheaper to offer them 3%,” the Finance Minister said.
He said the move would also enable Sri Lanka to be positioned as a
financial hub similar to Singapore and Dubai. The proposed financial hub
would be a key component of the Budget and Minister Karunanayake
encouraged key business leaders and other stakeholders to make use of
the fresh opportunities offered by the Budget. |
