2026-02-05 / Second Reading Debate: Institute of Real Estate Professionals Bill, Container Depot Operators Licensing Bill, and Licensing of Shipping Agents Amendment Bill - Member Contributions 2026-02-05
## Summary
Deputy Minister Abeysinghe defended the government's economic management record, dismissing Opposition predictions of economic collapse as politically motivated "counterfactual speculation," and argued that Sri Lanka has met IMF programme benchmarks ahead of the Managing Director's scheduled visit that Saturday to release the next tranche. He outlined key macroeconomic targets — including revenue at 15.9% of GDP, a primary surplus of approximately 2.5%, inflation near 5%, and high single-digit interest rates — as evidence of a stable recovery trajectory. On the specific legislation under debate, he highlighted the Container Depot Operators Licensing Bill as bringing regulatory order to a previously unregulated logistics sector, noting that logistics revenues reached a record USD 1.9 billion the prior year, and referenced planned port capacity expansion of 6 million TEUs through ECT and WCT developments. He also supported the Institute of Real Estate Professionals Bill as part of a broader government effort to establish professional standards and ethics across sectors, and invited Opposition economists to engage constructively through the Committee on Public Finance.
Madam Deputy Chairperson, today marks an important change in logistics — in imports and exports — as we consider these Bills.
To the Hon. Leader of the Opposition: predicting hypothetical tariff changes and then asking what we will do if they occur is the very definition of counterfactual speculation. The Opposition kept hoping the economy would collapse — that the IMF would walk away, that the World Bank would not support us, that US tariffs would kill exports, that the recent cyclone would sink the economy. They wanted instability because without it they cannot regain power. They have tried to scare investors, businesses, and banks.
Basic macroeconomics is now clear even to schoolchildren: where the economy was, what the IMF programme through 2027 requires, and how we proceed. Our policy statement commits to implementing it. We have met targets; attempts to derail it will fail.
On seniors’ interest: when the 15 percent was granted, policy rates were 28–30 percent. Today rates are around 9 percent. We protect seniors and retirees, but special rates must relate to prevailing market rates.
The IMF Managing Director arrives this Saturday. We are confident the next tranche will be released on time; we have met the required benchmarks. Our macro stability has improved: on external and fiscal balances, the import-export gap and the budget gap (widened by ad hoc spending and tax cuts) have been addressed sustainably.
Contrary to doomsaying, we have set a steady macro path: revenue near 15.9 percent of GDP, expenditure around 13 percent, capital expenditure about 4 percent, a primary surplus around 2.5 percent, inflation near 5 percent, interest rates in the high single digits, and a market-determined exchange rate. Export growth is crucial, and our transport and logistics sector — an area where Sri Lanka’s location gives us an advantage that others, like Singapore, have exploited — is finally delivering: last year logistics revenues reached about USD 1.9 billion, the highest ever.
We are expanding port capacity by 6 million TEUs through ECT and WCT, with more to come (WCT2 by 2030). This will double export potential in coming years. The Container Depot Operators Licensing Bill brings order and efficiency to a previously unregulated link in the chain.
On the Institute of Real Estate Professionals, Sri Lanka: the Government’s duty is to foster professionalism and accountability across all fields — with recognized bodies, standards, and ethics — and make these careers attractive to youth and globally competitive. We are engaging all sectors through the relevant ministries to build such frameworks. This Bill is one such step.
I also invite the Opposition’s economists to engage constructively — even an hour or two a week at the Committee on Public Finance — to help strengthen the recovery we are building.