President Maithripala Sirisena will chair a crucial meeting to discuss the possible changes to the Value Added Tax.

On June 30, the President publicly acknowledged the tax has put an unnecessary burden on the ordinary people and pledged to introduce appropriate amendments to correct the situation.

During a speech on Saturday, July 2, President Sirisena said that the discussions will focus on three key areas. He said some traders were levying a VAT higher than the stipulated amount and steps have to be taken to stop this. Certain traders levy taxes for goods that does not fall under the VAT regime and it has to be stopped also, he added.

In addition, a general amendment is needed to ease the pressure off the ordinary citizens, he added.

Traders launched protests recently against the increased VAT by closing down shops in several towns across the country.