No Currency Printing to Cover Deficit, Says Minister Anil Fernando

23-Aug-2025

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State Minister of Labour and Economic Planning Anil Fernando rejected opposition allegations that the government was printing money to manage the budget deficit.

Addressing Parliament on 21 August, he clarified that if money had indeed been printed, inflation would have surged sharply. He said the government had successfully achieved targeted revenue in the 2025 budget, noting that the Customs Department had recorded Rs. 1,316 billion in revenue against an expected Rs. 2,150 billion.

Fernando added that foreign reserves have increased compared to 2024, when the current government assumed office. He stressed that monetary stability is the responsibility of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and dismissed the opposition’s claims of printing Rs. 1.7 trillion as “false propaganda aimed at misleading the public.”