The debate on the committee stage or the third reading of the Appropriation Bill for the fiscal year 2023 has commenced in Parliament.

Parliament sittings commenced today (23) at 09.30 a.m. while the vote on the Third Reading is scheduled to be held on December 08 at 5.00 p.m.

Meanwhile, the vote of the second reading of the Appropriation Bill was passed in the parliament yesterday (Nov. 22), by a majority of 37 votes.

Announcing the results of the division at the end of the debate on the second reading last evening, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said 121 parliamentarians in total have voted in favour of the budget while 84 voted against it. MP C.V. Wigneswaran had abstained from voting.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, presented the 2023 Budget to parliament on November 14, aimed at creating long-term stable economic growth.

According to the 2023 budget, 77th budget of the independent Sri Lanka, the total expenditure for 2023 will be Rs. 5,819 billion (19.2%) and the total revenue and grants will be Rs. 3,415 billion (11.3%).

Meanwhile, the budget deficit for the fiscal year 2023 is estimated at Rs. 2,404 billion, which is 7.9 as a percentage.

Through this budget, the government has allocated Rs. 4,609 billion for recurring expenditure such as subsidies and salary payments. For salaries and wages, Rs. 1,002 billion has been set aside, and Rs. 1,114 billion for subsidies and transfers.