The debate on the no-confidence motion against Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne has been postponed indefinitely until the Attorney General gives an opinion on technical issues in the motion, parliamentary sources said.

The motion was submitted by the opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB). Government representatives raised the matter at a meeting of the Committee on Parliamentary Business, saying several provisions of the motion needed clarification and that the Attorney General’s advice should be obtained.

Obtaining the opinion would take time, so the debate could not be scheduled for the coming parliamentary week, the sources said. Chief Opposition Whip Gayantha Karunatilaka said a date for the debate would be fixed once the Attorney General’s advice was received.

The Committee on Parliamentary Business finalised the week’s agenda at a meeting on Friday under the chairmanship of Deputy Speaker Dr. Rizvie Salih. Parliament is scheduled to meet from 20 to 23 October, Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera announced.

An Opposition-sponsored Adjournment Motion will be debated on Tuesday, 20 October, from 11.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. On Wednesday, a resolution under the Public Debt Management Act and a Supplementary Estimate will be taken up between 11.30 a.m. and 5 p.m.

On Thursday, 22 October, the Second Reading debates on two Bills to amend the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Bills Nos. 79 and 80) will be held. The Second Reading debate on the Elimination of Rabies and Registration of Dogs Bill is set for Friday, 23 October.

Background

A no-confidence motion against the Speaker asks Members of Parliament to vote on whether the holder of the office should continue. The Speaker is elected by Members of Parliament and presides over sittings of the House. Wickramaratne succeeded Ashoka Ranwala as Speaker.

The Attorney General is the government’s chief legal adviser, and the office’s opinion is often sought when the legal or procedural validity of a parliamentary proposal is in question. The Committee on Parliamentary Business sets the order of business for each sitting week.

Under the Standing Orders, each sitting day begins with parliamentary business and oral questions to ministers, which are taken up before the main debates. On the sitting days listed, the period from 9.30 a.m. to 10 a.m. is reserved for business under Items 1 to 6 of Standing Order 22, and questions for oral answers run from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

What it means

With no date set, the motion will not come before Parliament in the week of 20 October. The timing now depends on when the Attorney General gives an opinion and on a further decision by the Committee on Parliamentary Business.

The bills and resolutions scheduled for the week proceed as planned. The Elimination of Rabies and Registration of Dogs Bill, according to its title, deals with dog registration as well as rabies control, so it may be of interest to dog owners.