Parliament will convene for four days from September 8 to 11, Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera has announced.

The week’s business was settled at a meeting of the Committee on Parliamentary Business held on August 20, chaired by Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne, according to a statement from the Parliamentary Communications Department.

The order paper

Each sitting day opens at 9.30 a.m. with business under Standing Orders 22(1) to (6), followed by question time.

On Tuesday, September 8, the House debates for approval two Orders published in Extraordinary Gazettes Nos. 2489/22 and 2493/19 under the Motor Traffic Act (Chapter 203), from 11.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. A half-hour adjournment-time debate on a motion moved by the Opposition follows.

On Wednesday, September 9, the sitting includes a half-hour slot for Questions to the Prime Minister, and the Second Reading debate on the Chief of Defence Staff (Repeal) Bill occupies the afternoon.

On Thursday, September 10, the House debates a Resolution under the Women’s Empowerment Act for approval.

Friday, September 11 is given over to Private Members’ Motions. Ada Derana listed the subjects as regulation of petroleum and fuel, water regulation, birth-rate incentives, protection of the Diyagama Forest, a pension deduction affecting Pirivena teachers, development of the Kithul industry, and a medical faculty for the South Eastern University.

What is at stake

The Chief of Defence Staff (Repeal) Bill is the most substantial item. The post of Chief of Defence Staff was created in 2009 to sit above the three service commanders; repealing the enabling law would remove that statutory office.

The Daily Mirror’s report of the schedule matched Ada Derana’s on the sitting days, the committee date and the Motor Traffic Act orders, but did not itemise the Friday motions.

Update: August 30 — vote set for 5.00 p.m.

NewsFirst reported on Sunday that the vote on the Bill is scheduled for 5.00 p.m. on September 9, at the close of the afternoon debate.

It also gave the government’s reasoning for the first time. The Chief of Defence Staff post was originally established to coordinate and manage joint operations among the Tri-Forces, NewsFirst said, and the decision to abolish it was taken because the office “is no longer considered necessary in the current context, particularly in terms of managing defence expenditure.” Neither the Ada Derana nor the Daily Mirror schedule reports had given a rationale.

One point of wording differs between the outlets. NewsFirst described the Bill as being “presented to Parliament on September 9”, but the Bill was gazetted in May and appears on the published order paper for a Second Reading debate, not a first tabling. The September 9 sitting is the debate and vote stage rather than the Bill’s introduction.

The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution — the subject of thirteen Supreme Court petitions and sustained objection from the Bar Association of Sri Lanka — does not appear on the published order paper for the week.

Update: September 7 — schedule reconfirmed on the eve of the sitting

NewsFirst restated the week’s business on Monday, a day before Parliament meets, and its account matched the published order paper: the Chief of Defence Staff (Repeal) Bill on September 9 with a vote at 5.00 p.m., and the Women’s Empowerment Act item on September 10. It gave the same government rationale — more effective management of defence expenditure, and the view that the post is no longer required.

The one detail added is the citation of the women’s item, which NewsFirst identified as amendments under the Women’s Empowerment Act No. 37 of 2024. It again described the Bill as being “presented to Parliament on September 9”, the same wording flagged above; the Bill was gazetted in May and is down for a Second Reading debate.

Sources