1. Admission of students to grade one of schools – 2023
The Ministry of Education has prepared a new revised circular considering the facts
submitted by various parties including the Principals, circular revision committee, the
Investigation division of the Ministry, Bribery and Corruption Investigation Commission
as well as the Elections Commission and the court decisions. Accordingly, the
concurrence of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted to the proposal furnished by the
Minister of Education for adhering to the provisions mentioned in the said revised
circular for the admission of students to grade one of the schools with effect from the
year 2023.
2. Submission of rules published in the gazette notification to the Parliament for
approval
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to the proposal submitted by the
Hon. Prime Minister as the Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National
Policies for the submission of 02 gazette notifications consisted of orders imposed under
Sri Lanka Export Development Act No 40 of 1979, 06 gazette notifications issued
imposing rules under the Special Commodity Levy Act No 48 of 2007 and a gazette
notification issued imposing the revenue conservation order No 02/2022 under the
Revenue Conservation Act No 19 of 1962 to the Parliament for its approval.
3. Issuance of new rules under section 22 of Foreign Exchange Act No. 12 of 2017.
Approval of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted at their meeting held on 06 th December
2021 to issue a rule under section 22 of foreign exchange act No. 12 of 2017; in order to
impose limitations for a period of 06 months for certain capital transactions that perform
causes flow of foreign exchange. Accordingly, the period of validity of the rule imposed
by the gazette notification issued is to be ended from 01 st July 2022. The finance board of
the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has recommended that it is suitable to issue a new rule to
further implement the limitations imposed by the said rule. Accordingly, the Cabinet of
Ministers granted approval to the resolution submitted by the Hon. Prime Minister as the
Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies for the issuance of
new rules under section 22 of the Foreign Exchange Act No. 12 of 2017 and thereby
submit the rules to the Parliament for approval.
4. Social Security Contribution Tax Bill
Parliament has passed a resolution in the 2022 budget proposals to introduce a Social
Security Fund. It was decided to introduce a new tax at the rate of 2.5% for importers,
manufacturers, service providers, wholesalers and retailers whose total turnover exceeds
Rs. 120 million per annum. The Attorney General's clearance has been received for the
bill prepared by the draftsman for this purpose has been cleared by the Attorney General.
As such, the proposal made by the Hon. Prime Minister in his capacity as the Minister of
Finance, Economic Stabilisation, and National Policies to publish the said Bill in the
Government Gazette and submit the same thereafter in Parliament for approval, was
approved by the Cabinet.
5. Preservation and Promotion of the Martial Art “Angampora”
The Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs has taken steps to promote the Martial Art
“Angampora”, an important traditional game, As a martial art as well as a national
heritage of the country. Cabinet approval has been granted in 2019 to lift the ban on the
martial art Angampora. However, the relevant gazette notification has not been published
so far. Therefore Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by the Minister of
Sports and Youth Affairs to publish in a gazette notification the lifting of the ban
imposed by the English colonial rulers
6. No-Pay leave to public officers for employment or other productive work
Under the existing provisions, a public officer is entitled to a maximum of 5 years No
Pay leave during his tenure for study or foreign employment. But public officers are not
interested in taking such leave due to non-inclusion of that period in the calculation of
pensions, impact on seniority and other conditions. Considering the prevailing economic
situation in the country, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by the
Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs and Provincial Council to issue
circulars amending the existing provisions to enable public officers to take No-pay leave
for a period of 5 years without affecting their seniority and pension for employment or
other productive work abroad.
7. Encouraging public officials to engage in agriculture and cultivation
The current shortage of fuel has disrupted passenger transport, making it difficult for
public sector workers to access their own transportation. Due to this situation, it seems
appropriate to grant government officials leave for one (01) working day of the week and
provide them with the necessary facilities to engage in agricultural activities in their
backyards or elsewhere as a solution to the food shortage that is expected to occur in the
future. Therefore the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by the
Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs and Provincial Council to close all
government institutions except agencies providing essential services such as water,
electricity, health, defense, education, transport, port and air services on Fridays for the
next 3 months.
