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Sri Lankaportal |
In Sri Lanka, the Cabinet of Ministers is the council of ministers that form the central government of Sri Lanka. The body of senior ministers responsible and answerable to the Parliament of Sri Lanka. The President is a member of the cabinet and its head. [1]
The current cabinet is the Wickremesinghe cabinet, [2] which consists of 21 ministers since 6 October 2023. [3] There are also 38 state ministers who are not members of the cabinet.
The Executive Council of Ceylon was the Executive Council created in British Ceylon by the British colonial administration on the recommendations of the Colebrooke-Cameron Commission along with the Legislative Council of Ceylon, as the legislative body, on 13 March 1833.
At its creation the Executive Council was headed by the Governor, along with five members appointed by the Governor. These five members were officials who held the posts of the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Auditor-General, the Treasurer and the General Officer Commanding, Ceylon. The Council exercised executive power and advised the governor. As a result of the First Manning Reforms three non-officials were elected to the executive council.
With enactment of the new constitution of the Dominion of Ceylon in 1947 the Executive Council was replaced by a National Cabinet.
As per the Sri Lankan Constitution, the President is a member of and head of the cabinet. [1] The president appoints as Prime Minister, a Member of Parliament who has the confidence of parliament. [1] Other ministers of the cabinet are appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister. [4] The president may appoint himself to any ministry he chooses. [4] According to the constitution the president must be the Minister of Defence. [5] The President also appoints, in consultation with the Prime Minister, non-cabinet ministers (state ministers, project ministers) and Deputy ministers. [6] [7]
Constitutionally, the Cabinet of Ministers charged with the direction and control of the Government of the Republic and is collectively responsible and answerable to Parliament. Cabinet Ministers may table cabinet papers.
The cabinet meets on a regular basis, usually weekly on a Tuesday to discuss the most important issues of government policy. The president typically chairs the meeting and sets the agenda. All cabinet meetings are held behind closed doors and the minutes are kept confidential. The cabinet meets at the Old Parliament Building in Colombo.
A cabinet committee is a subset of the larger Cabinet, consisting of a number of ministers who have responsibility in related areas of policy. [8]
Cabinet offices are located in the Republic Building and are headed by the Secretary to the Cabinet, appointed by the President.
A Cabinet minister would receive a salary of Rs. 140,000 (having been increased from 65,000 from January 2018); paid monthly from the respective ministry budget. [9] In addition, since all ministers are members of parliament they are entitled to allowances and benefits of parliamentarians. [10]
Cabinet ministers are entitled to an official residence, as well as an office and personal staff allocated by their ministry.
Each cabinet minister is entitled to three vehicles, which includes an official vehicle and a security vehicle provided and maintained by their ministry. For domestic air travel, helicopters from the No. 4 (VVIP/VIP) Helicopter Squadron of the Sri Lanka Air Force are charted by the ministry.
Traditionally, security for the ministers has been provided by the Sri Lanka Police. During emergencies military units have been allocated to bolster security to certain ministers based on threat levels. Currently, the Ministerial Security Division is in charge of security of ministers.
In the Sri Lankan order of precedence, the cabinet ministers are placed above the former presidents but below the provincial governors (within their respective province).
Ministers appointed under article 43(1) of the constitution. The members of the cabinet is as follows:
Sri Lanka is a semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Sri Lanka is both head of state and head of government, and it relies on a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet of Ministers. Legislative power is vested in the Parliament. For decades, the party system was dominated by the socialist Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the conservative United National Party. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
The president of Sri Lanka is the head of state and head of government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. The president is the chief executive of the union government and the commander-in-chief of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces.
The Speaker of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the presiding officer of the chamber. The current Speaker of the Parliament is Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, in office since 20 August 2020. The Speaker fulfills a number of important functions in relation to the operation of the House, which is based upon the British Westminster parliamentary system.
The chief justice of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head of the judiciary of Sri Lanka and the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Established in 1801, the chief justice is one of ten Supreme Court justices; the other nine are the puisne justices of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. The post was created in 1801. The chief justice is nominated by the Constitutional Council, and appointed by the president. The first chief justice was Codrington Edmund Carrington. The 47th and current chief justice is Jayantha Jayasuriya.
A Governor of a Province in Sri Lanka, is the head of the provincial council and representative of the President of Sri Lanka in the province. Established in 1987, under the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka and deriving its powers from the Provincial Council Act No 47 of 1987, a governor exercises executive power in respect of subjects devolved to provincial council.
The Ministry of Power and Energy is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for power and renewable energy. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on power and renewable energy and other subjects which come under its purview.
The Prime Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the head and most senior member of parliament in the cabinet of ministers. It is the second-most powerful position in Sri Lanka's executive branch behind the president, who is the constitutional chief executive. The Cabinet is collectively held accountable to parliament for their policies and actions.
Rajapakse Mohottige Don Suranimala Rajapaksha was a Sri Lankan politician. Rajapaksha was first elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in 1994 and he was the Minister of School Education in Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka in 2001 to 2004. He was a member of the United National Party (UNP) and a member of UNP Working Committee. He was also appointed as the Coordinating secretary to the prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in 2015. At the time of his death he acted as the special envoy (representative) to the Prime Minister. His younger son Kanishka Rajapaksha was also appointed as the Coordinating Assistant to the Prime Minister after the death of Rajapaksha. Kanishka is an Attorney at Law in his profession.
The Ministry of Urban Development and Housing is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for housing and construction. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on housing and construction and other subjects which come under its purview. The current Minister of Urban Development and Housing is Prasanna Ranatunga. The ministry's secretary is Mr. R M Abyeratne.
The Ministry of Health is the central government ministry of Sri Lanka responsible for health. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on health, nutrition, indigenous medicine and other subjects which come under its purview.
The Ministry of Home Affairs is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for public administration.
The Ministry of Fisheries is the central government ministry of Sri Lanka responsible for fisheries. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on fisheries and aquatic resources development and other subjects which come under its purview. The current Minister of Fisheries is Douglas Devananda. The ministry's secretary is K.D.S. Ruwanchandra.
The Ministry of Plantation Industries is a ministry in the Government of Sri Lanka.
The Ministry of Agriculture is the central government ministry of Sri Lanka responsible for agriculture. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on home affairs and other subjects which come under its purview. The current Minister of Agriculture is Mahinda Amaraweera. The ministry's secretary is B. Wijayaratne.
The Ministry of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for provincial councils and local government. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on provincial councils and Local Government and other subjects which come under its purview. The current Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government is Dinesh Gunawardena. The ministry's secretary is H. T. Kamal Pathmasiri. The ministry has had oversight of drafting the 20th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution.
The Ministry of Industries is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for industry and commerce. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on industry and commerce and other subjects which come under its purview. The current Minister of Industries is Ramesh Pathirana. The ministry's secretary is Thilaka Jayasundara.
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Aviation is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for ports and shipping. The ministry is responsible for formulating and implementing national policy on ports and shipping and other subjects which come under its purview. The current Minister is Nimal Siripala de Silva. The ministry's secretary is M.M.P.K. Mayadunne.
The third Gotabaya Rajapaksa cabinet was the central government of Sri Lanka led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. It was formed in April 2022 after the mass resignation of the previous cabinet and ended in May 2022 following the resignation of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The fourth Gotabaya Rajapaksa cabinet, also known as the Rajapaksa-Wickremesinghe cabinet, was the central government of Sri Lanka led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. It was formed in May 2022 following the appointment of Ranil Wickremesinghe as the new Prime Minister and ended in July 2022 following Rajapaksa's resignation.