Cabinet Spokesman Minister Nalinda Jayatissa yesterday said the Government’s position is to hold the Provincial Council elections at the earliest possible opportunity, once the necessary legislation is approved by Parliament.Speaking at the weekly briefing to announce Cabinet decisions, the Minister said funds have already been allocated to conduct the Provincial Council elections.He said the Parliamentary Committee appointed to consider and draft the required legislation should complete its task, reiterating that the Government wants the elections to be held as soon as possible.“There are many projects that need to be undertaken by the Provincial Councils. The tasks that could be carried out by Provincial Councilors and Provincial Council Ministers currently have to be handled by the respective Ministries,” he said.Responding to a question regarding a statement made by NPP MP Nilanthi Kottahachchi over the PC elections, the Minister said the government is not delaying the PC polls and that Kottahachchi’s statement may have been altered.The Minister stressed that conducting the Provincial Council elections was not solely a responsibility of the Government and said the process should be carried out with the agreement of all political parties.

He noted that political parties have differing views on the delimitation process and said all such concerns need to be taken into consideration before proceeding with the elections.