The House Committee of Parliament has decided to revise the meal charges levied on parliamentary staff, following requests made by staff members.

The decision was made when the committee met in Parliament on Saturday (21), chaired by Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne.

As per the committee’s earlier decision on May 23, charges for meals for parliamentary staff were set at Rs. 4,000 per month for executive-grade officers and Rs. 2,500 per month for non-executive staff members, effective from June 01. However, after considering the requests from the staff at length, the committee decided to revise the rates. 

Accordingly, from July 1 onwards, executive-grade officers will be charged Rs. 3,000 per month, and non-executive staff members will be charged Rs. 2,000 per month.

Meanwhile, the current meal prices for drivers of MPs, security officers, and journalists using the Parliament cafeteria will remain unchanged, as previously decided on May 23.

Additionally, discussions were held regarding the allocation of a portion of the MPs’ holiday home in Nuwara Eliya for parliamentary staff.

Until now, only Members of Parliament had access to reserve the holiday bungalow. However, following the Speaker’s instructions, one room in the facility will now be made available for use by parliamentary staff.

The committee also discussed renovations to the MP housing complex in Madiwela and emphasized the need to prepare a daytime resting area for the drivers of MPs who arrive on parliamentary sitting days.