The Price of Parliament (2022)

Abstract

In 2022, the most recent year with detailed data, Sri Lanka spent LKR 3,248 million on operating its parliament, amounting to an average of LKR 32.2 million per sitting. This expenditure is divided across the subsections of Establishment Services, Members of Parliament, and The Speaker's Office. Over half of the total budget, LKR 1,759 million, went to Establishment Services which included the essential day-to-day operations of parliament. Expenditure on the Members of Parliament accounted for LKR 1,288 million, which was 40 per cent of the total cost of running parliament. The Speaker’s Office accounted for 6 per cent of parliament's total operating costs, with LKR 201 million dedicated to supporting the Speaker’s responsibilities and administrative needs.