The SLFP is against taking up the new Inland Revenue Bill in Parliament any sooner, State Minister Dilan Perera said.
Responding to a question by a journalist at a press conference at the SLFP headquarters in Colombo yesterday, the State Minister said the SLFP members in the Government would not allow the Bill to be passed in Parliament in its present form.
“The existing Inland Revenue Act we have is a very strong one which evolved with the time.
The new draft Bill is a copy of the same the IMF prepared for Ghana. Ghana at that time had no Inland Revenue Act. We request Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera to hold the Bill for some time and allow more discussion on it,” he said.
Perera also said the content in the new Bill give rise to doubts whether the Government plans to hand over tax collection to private sector.
He pointed out changes to the current system at a time the newly installed the Revenue Administration and Management Information System (RAMIS) has shown an increase in tax collection would be imprudent.
“We can and discuss and bring in Amendments to the current Act” he said.