By PRIYAN DE SILVA

State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe at a media briefing held on Monday (30) said that it was an age-old practice of Trade Unions to launch pre-budget protest campaigns demanding pay hikes and subsequently claim credit for whatever wage revision which may be proposed in the budget.

He said that the picketing campaign by Trade Unions demanding for a wage hike or an allowance of twenty thousand rupees a month was a case in point.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies at the Cabinet Meeting held on

Monday (30) made the Cabinet of Ministers aware that it is expected to furnish proposals to the Parliament  in regard to revision of government service and private sector salaries by the next budget.