By The Pulseline News Desk
As Sri Lanka heads towards the 2027 Budget debate, the Opposition is turning to the public for ideas, concerns and priorities, launching a new initiative aimed at putting citizens’ voices directly into Parliament.
The Office of the Leader of the Opposition has launched a special public consultation programme titled “Tell the Leader of the Opposition”, inviting citizens to submit their views and proposals ahead of the 2027 Budget, scheduled to be presented and debated in November.
The initiative is intended to provide Opposition MPs with first-hand information, data and public perspectives that can be used when formulating proposals and challenging Government policies during the Budget debate.
Rather than relying solely on party-level policy discussions or parliamentary debates, the programme seeks to capture what people are actually experiencing on the ground — including their economic pressures, expectations and concerns about Government spending and policies.
According to the Opposition Leader’s Office, public suggestions were also collected during previous Budget debates. However, the programme has been restructured this year with the aim of making the collection and use of public feedback more effective and productive.
The move comes at a critical point for the country’s economy, with the 2027 Budget expected to come under close scrutiny over taxation, public expenditure, cost of living pressures, employment, investment and the Government’s broader economic recovery strategy.
The Opposition has therefore invited members of the public to submit proposals on issues they believe should receive priority in next year’s Budget.
The consultation will remain open until 1 November 2026, giving the public an opportunity to make submissions before the Budget debate begins.
Citizens can submit their proposals through several channels:
WhatsApp: 070 691 2654
Email: [email protected]
Post: “Tell the Leader of the Opposition”, Budget Proposals – 2027, Office of the Leader of the Opposition of Parliament, Sri Jayewardenepura-Kotte.
The initiative effectively places the public at the centre of the Opposition’s preparations for the Budget debate, with the responses expected to provide an indication of the issues people want Parliament to address.
It also creates a channel through which concerns that may not otherwise reach Parliament can be brought directly to Opposition lawmakers.
For the Opposition, the challenge will be to convert the submissions into specific, evidence-based proposals rather than allowing the exercise to become another collection of general public grievances.
For citizens, however, the initiative offers an opportunity to influence the parliamentary debate before the 2027 Budget is finalised — by telling the Opposition what they believe should be funded, changed or prioritised.
With the November Budget debate approaching, the question now is whether the public will use the opportunity to tell the Opposition what Sri Lanka’s next Budget should deliver — and what it should not.
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