Therefore, he said that the new Inland Revenue Bill will broad-base the tax system and incorporate globally accepted new tax principles to deal with international cross border relations.
Minister Samaraweera met representatives of the trade unions of the Inland Revenue Department at the Ministry of Finance on Monday (10), and held discussions on matters relating to functional activities that come under the purview of the IRD. The Minister invited the employees of the IRD to submit their proposals and to discuss any other issues faced by them. Minister Samaraweera further stated that he was prepared to consider the trade unions concerns in order to enhance the tax revenue of the Government.
The trade union representatives briefed Minister Samaraweera on certain administrative and technical issues in the department. The representatives cited the lack of local and foreign training opportunities for officers of the Inland Revenue Department and apprised the Minister on issues faced by them with regard to the payment of incentives. They also stressed on the need for a new building for the Head Office of the Department of Inland Revenue.
Although tax revenue has decreased since 2011, the Government has been able to increase national revenue via increased tax collection to reach an all-time high in the recent past due to new policies adopted by the Government.
Deputy Secretaries to the Treasury, Ms. G.D.C. Ekanayake and Mr. S.R. Attygalle, Director General of Fiscal Policy Mr. A.K Senevirathne, Director General of the Inland Revenue Department Mr. Ivan Dissanayake along with officials from the Ministry of Finance and the Inland Revenue Department were also present.