Parliament’s Committee on Public Finance has approved the draft Appropriation Bill for the 2027 financial year, Hiru News reported on Thursday.
The approval followed a special committee sitting held at the Parliament Complex on 22 October, chaired by MP Dr. Harsha de Silva, at which officials of the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development took the committee through the estimates at length.
Finance Ministry officials presented the government’s projected 2027 expenditure, capital allocations, state revenue targets and debt servicing requirements. The committee also examined the macroeconomic forecasts used to build the estimates and the legal framework governing public finance management.
What the committee reviewed
Under capital expenditure, the committee went through allocations for road development, health and education facility upgrades, expansion of the electricity network and urban development projects.
Discussion also covered financial assistance and loan guarantee schemes for small and medium enterprises, and provisions for public-sector salaries, pensions and the running costs of state services.
Officials additionally briefed the committee on 2027 foreign debt servicing requirements, expected foreign financing, measures to improve the efficiency of tax administration, and steps to ensure budget allocations are actually spent.
That last point has been a live concern this year. Government capital spending stood at under 30 percent of the annual allocation through the first nine months of 2026.
Where this sits in the budget cycle
The Bill was presented to Parliament for its first reading on 7 October, setting 2027 government expenditure at Rs. 4,992.77bn and capping outstanding borrowing at Rs. 3,800bn. The Budget Speech is scheduled for 12 November.
Deputy ministers Nishantha Jayaweera and Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne were among those attending the committee sitting, along with MPs Ravi Karunanayake, Harshana Rajapaksa, Ajith Agalakada, Nimal Palihena, Chithral Fernando, Wijesiri Basnayake, Thilina Samarakoon and Lakmali Hemachandra.
Not reported
Hiru’s filing does not state whether the committee attached any conditions or observations to its approval, and gives no figures of its own for the 2027 estimates. No other verified newsroom had filed on the COPF approval at the time of writing.
