The Second Reading of the Online Safety Bill was taken up for debate in Parliament today (23), with 83 Members of Parliament voting in favor and 50 against a motion to debate the Bill.
As a result, the Second Reading Debate of the proposed Online Safety Bill commenced in Parliament a short while ago.
The parliamentary session was postponed for 10 minutes to convene a party leaders' meeting for discussions on the proposed Online Safety Bill, on the request of all Opposition Parliamentarians.
Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana suspended sittings Parliament for 10 minutes after Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa requested for a meeting of Party Leaders prior to the Online Safety Bill being debated.
Opposition parties met Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena before the commencement of today's sittings too to urge him to postpone the debate. However, the government was not agreeable to such a postponement and insisted that the two-day debate continued as earlier agreed.
Once sittings recommenced after the party leaders' meeting, a motion on whether the House is agreeable to take up the Second Reading of the debate on the Online Safety Bill was taken up for a vote.
The motion was accordingly passed a majority of 33 votes, with 83 MPs voting in favour and 50 against.
Police have arrested the suspect connected to the sexual assault on a female doctor at the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital today morning in Galnewa.
The Government today tabled in the House the Report of the Commission to Inquiry into the Establishment and Maintenance of Unlawful Places of Detention and Torture Chambers in the Batalanda Housing Scheme.
Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe said today he wholly rejects the Batalanda Commission report and that it was appointed wholly with the intention slinging political mud at him.
Leader of the National People’s Party (NPP) and one time Propaganda Secretary of the JVP Wimal Weerawansa accused the Government of bringing back the “Batalanda Commission” for a media spectacle instead of a genuine concern for those who suffered during the 1988-1990 period.
Speaker (Dr.) Jagath Wickramaratne to announced to the Parliament regarding the vacant seat created in Parliament due to the resignation of Mohamed Sali Naleem from his position as a Member of Parliament.
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