PM says land will not be sold to foreigners for port city projects

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe promised that land would not be sold to foreigners for port city projects.

Responding to a question in Parliament today about whether 20 hectares of land will be sold to the Chinese for the Chinese-funded Colombo Port City Project as agreed upon by the previous regime, the Prime Minister said the Government would not sell land to foreigners.

“Land could have been leased to the foreign firm or sold on title but we have not given ownership to foreign firms,” he said.

Explaining that around 100 hectares were requested additionally to construct a racing track, the Premier said: “We have no intention of establishing a track in the middle of the metropolis.”

He assured Parliament that the Government would investigate whether the amount flagged was the amount initially requested by the Chinese firm or the amount suggested by the Sri Lankan Government.

The Prime Minister said the environmental impact assessment report needed to be studied first.

“We need to look at the environmental impact assessment report first. We do not want any harm to come to the Sri Lankan coast. If such an impact exists then we can amend the proposal,” he said.