2026-01-28
News Categories : Committee News
An institutional review of the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) and the Jaffna Teaching Hospital was conducted at the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Health, Mass Media and Women’s Empowerment.
The committee met in Parliament on 21.01.2026, under the chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nihal Abeysinghe.
Accordingly, the review of the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol was taken up first. Officials of the Authority informed the committee that approximately 22,000 people die annually due to tobacco and alcohol consumption, and that the country incurs an annual economic loss of Rs. 225–240 billion as a result.
They further stated that steps are currently being taken to amend the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol Act by incorporating the necessary legal provisions to effectively address this situation.
The officials emphasized that 104 countries worldwide have banned the sale of cigarettes individually, and highlighted the importance of implementing a similar law in Sri Lanka. They pointed out that when cigarettes are sold individually, the health warnings displayed on cigarette packaging are not visible to consumers.
Additionally, the officials stressed the importance of imposing taxes on cigarettes after determining their prices.
Commenting on the matter, the Chair of the Committee stated that the committee is prepared to provide the necessary support for the proposed amendments to the Act and for other programmes of the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol.
Subsequently, an institutional review of the Jaffna Teaching Hospital was conducted. Hospital authorities briefed the committee on the current status of the hospital. They pointed out that there is a growing need for additional staff in order to further improve and expand medical treatments and services currently being provided.
They also informed the committee of the need to upgrade the Jaffna Teaching Hospital to the status of a National Hospital. Responding to this, the Secretary to the Ministry of Health stated that Sri Lanka currently has three National Hospitals, and that steps are expected to be taken in the near future to elevate the Jaffna Teaching Hospital to National Hospital status after fulfilling the required criteria.
The Chair of the Committee also highlighted the need to reassess staffing requirements at the hospital.
Furthermore, hospital authorities requested the committee to facilitate the appointment of an internal auditor to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital in order to ensure transparency in hospital administration and overall operations.
Hon. Deputy Chair of the Committees Hemali Weerasekara, committee members Hon. MPs Attorney-at-Law Dayasiri Jayasekara, Muneer Mulaffer, Samanmali Gunasinghe, (Prof.) Sena Nanayakkara, (Dr.) S. Sri Bhavanandarajah, (Dr.) Ramanathan Archchuna and with the permission of the Chair, Hon. MPs (Dr.) Janaka Senarathna and (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam were present at the committee meeting.
Also in attendance were the Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, officials of the Ministry, the Director of the Jaffna Teaching Hospital along with administrative officers, and the Chairman and officials of the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol.
2026-06-19
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Environment focused its attention on the issue of water pollution in the Kelani River when it met in Parliament recently (10th June) under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Environment, Dr. Dammika Patabendi.During the meeting, the Committee was briefed on the progress of discussions being held with companies that have expressed willingness to invest in a project aimed at cleaning the waters of the Kelani River.The Committee also discussed a number of proposals and other issues raised by Hon. Members of Parliament.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament and officials.
2026-06-18
A meeting of the Women Parliamentarians Caucus was held in Parliament recently to discuss the importance of incorporating Gender-Responsive Budgeting into Sri Lanka’s national budget formulation process and to examine the challenges associated with its implementation.The meeting was chaired by the Chairperson of the Caucus and Hon. Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Saroja Savithri Paulraj. Hon. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya also participated in the discussion.A key concern raised during the discussion was the lack of adequate data and indicators to accurately assess and measure women’s economic contributions within the budgetary process. Drawing on examples of approaches adopted in India and other countries, members of the Caucus underscored the need to identify and address existing systemic and technical gaps in Sri Lanka’s budgeting framework.The Caucus also emphasized the importance of disaggregating data by gender in project reporting and strengthening digital data management systems to support such efforts. It was further noted that identifying relevant gender-related considerations at the initial stages of project design and implementation at the ministerial level would facilitate more effective project analysis, monitoring, and evaluation of outcomes.The need to move away from existing traditional and time-consuming methods towards formal online systems and data-driven analytical tools was also emphasized.The current progress and challenges in integrating Gender-Responsive Budgeting into Sri Lanka’s public financial policy were discussed in detail during the meeting.It was also emphasized that such budgeting should not be limited to nominal percentages in documents, but that the need to establish a formal framework and data system to ensure it has a real and practical impact was also highlighted.The Hon.Deputy Chairperson of Committees Hemalee Weerasekera, Hon. Deputy Minister Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne, Co-Vice Chairpersons of the Caucus, Hon. Members of Parliament Chamindrani Kiriella, Attorney at Law and Samanmalee Gunasinghe, Hon. Members of Parliament Thushari Jayasinghe, Attorney at Law, Krishnan Kaleichelvi, Sagarika Athauda ,Attorney at Law, Nilanthi Kottahachchi, Attorney at Law, Ambika Samivel and Lakmali Hemachandra, Attorney at Law, along with a group of officials from the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, also participated in the event.
2026-06-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government met recently (Jun. 12) at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, Prof. A.H.M.H. Abayarathna.During the meeting, Members of Parliament discussed a range of issues and proposals relating to their respective electorates, as well as several other matters of public importance.Hon. Members of Parliament and officials were present at the meeting.
2026-06-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs met recently (Jun. 09) at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Dr. Hiniduma Sunil Senevi.During the meeting, Members of Parliament discussed a number of proposals and issues, including reviewing the progress of discussions initiated with the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education and the Department of Examinations regarding the formulation of regulations to prevent the conduct of private tuition classes on Sunday mornings, thereby facilitating the holding of Dhamma School classes on Sundays.The meeting was attended by Hon. Deputy Ministers, Hon. Members of Parliament and officials.
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