Hon. Mahinda Jayasinghe - Deputy Minister of Labour

Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe spoke in support of extending a Regulation under the Foreign Exchange Act, No. 12 of 2017, which has been renewed by Gazette approximately every six months since 2020. The current extension raises the cap on outward payments through foreign currency accounts for resident business entities from USD 200,000 to USD 500,000, and increases the personal foreign currency account limit for permissible capital transactions from USD 20,000 to USD 25,000. He framed these increases as a signal of gradual economic liberalisation and expanding opportunities for foreign exchange earners.

## Summary Deputy Minister Jayasinghe provided a ministerial response on the performance and backlog status of the Department of Labour's complaint resolution process. He reported that in 2025, the majority of complaints were resolved within three to six months, with 23,429 court cases pending as of September 2025, and that the complaint backlog decreased from 11,071 to 9,125 over the course of the year. To address delays and inefficiencies, the Deputy Minister outlined several reform measures, including filling cadre vacancies (142 of 582 filled, with 36 new Labour Officers recently appointed), digitalization of departmental functions, staff training programmes, and continuous monitoring through zonal and senior management reviews. He also noted that a Cabinet-approved 17-member committee is actively leading a labour law modernisation process to simplify outdated legislation and reduce the volume of complaints.

Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe raised a matter of privilege against Hon. Chaminda Wijesiri (Samagi Jana Balawegaya), citing a statement made on 6 February 2026 that he characterized as unfounded and defamatory. The statement in question accused Jayasinghe of selling lands while representing trade unions, avoiding court proceedings, and called him "a big thief." Jayasinghe requested that the matter be referred to the Committee on Ethics and Privileges for further consideration.

Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe made a brief interjection after his name was referenced in debate, rejecting criticism from the Opposition and questioning the credibility of its members. He defended his party's record of supporting former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and accused the Opposition of misleading the public on education reforms, contending that the Opposition Leader's current claims contradict their prior conduct on the issue.

## Summary Deputy Minister Mahinda Jayasinghe defended the government's record across several policy areas, arguing that the administration has stabilized the economy, managed a major natural disaster, and delivered development projects to village level, while rejecting Opposition accusations as baseless. He challenged the Opposition Leader's recent statement that he would "write it in blood" regarding Development Officers, questioning whether this implied an intent to circumvent established service codes and legal frameworks. On education reforms, he drew a distinction between the government's approach — which he said strengthens the state's role and ensures equal opportunity — and what he characterized as the Opposition's previous agenda of privatization and reduced public funding, accusing them of dishonestly reversing their stated position after public protests backfired. He concluded by listing a series of ongoing legal proceedings against former ministers and officials from previous administrations — including the arrest of Chamithri Rambukwella by the Bribery Commission on the day of the speech — asserting that the government is pursuing accountability through the courts systematically and without political interference, while acknowledging public demand for faster action.

Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe made a procedural motion proposing that Hon. Upul Kithsiri assume the Chair, indicating a change in presiding officer for the parliamentary session.