Oct 04, Colombo: Sri Lanka's main opposition United National Party (UNP) says the government has taken measures to cut down essential expenditure in order to bridge the budget deficit.

UNP parliamentarian Dr. Harsha de Silva told a news conference that the government has not cut down on unnecessary expenditure and has failed to identify its priorities.

He noted that the estimated budget deficit for this year was 6.2 percent while the deficit within the first six months had reached 5.67 percent.

According to Dr. de Silva, the government had cut down allocations on the Capital expenditure of the higher education sector by 47 percent in 2011.

He added that the government had allocated more monies on constructing roads and pavements, which are not considered priorities.

However the government is of the view that infrastructure development is essential for the economic growth of the country and to create employment for the masses.