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Cabinet clash over vehicle factory
View(s):Minister and the United People’s Freedom Alliance General Secretary Mahinda Amaraweera will submit a memorandum to the Cabinet calling on the Government to withhold a proposal to grant concessions to a vehicle importer trying to assemble vehicles locally.
Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake last week submitted a Cabinet proposal seeking a 70 percent tax concession for locally assembled vehicles by Vehicles Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd with used vehicle parts.
Mr. Amaraweera said he opposed the proposal on the grounds that concessions should not be given to one selected company and that the particular importer had already violated Customs regulations.
He said investigations against the company had been suppressed due to political pressure even during the previous government.  Mr. Karunanayake was seeking the concession for a maximum of 2,250 vehicles over a three year period and the company was assembling vehicles using used vehicle parts, enabling it to make higher local value addition.
Last week, the Sunday Times reported that the Finance Ministry had directed the Customs to immediately release eight containers carrying vehicle spare parts for the company.
Meanwhile this week, the Customs raided the assembling plant at Minuwangoda and took into custody 54 vehicles assembled with imported spare parts.
Customs officials said this contravened the Motor Traffic Act.