The government has decided to postpone the presentation of the 2025 budget proposals. Although a budget for 2025 was initially scheduled to be presented in November this year, the upcoming parliamentary General Election has led to its postponement.

As a result, the newly formed government will first present a vote on account to cover the expenses for the first four months of 2025, followed by the full national budget for the year.

After the General Election, scheduled for November 14, the new government must officially gazette ministries and the relevant institutions. Following this, they will need to prepare estimates of expenses, development proposals, and revenue collection strategies for the upcoming year.

Due to the limited time available for these tasks, the government will first focus on submitting a vote on account for the initial four months of 2025, government sources said.

This Interim Bill will ensure that essential expenses and day-to-day operations of the government are funded and approved by Parliament during the first quarter of 2025.

After this, the Ministries and their functions will be systematically allocated and gazetted based on a scientific foundation. Once these arrangements are in place, the full national budget for 2025 will be presented. Finance Ministry sources indicate that the government will expedite the process of presenting the complete 2025 budget as soon as possible.

(Dailynews.lk)

(This story, originally published by Dailynews.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)