COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka's new government has announced sweeping tax cuts and reforms in a bid to provide relief to the masses ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for early next year.

The Cabinet decided Wednesday to cut the value added tax to 8% from 15%, effective Dec. 1, and to abolish seven other taxes, including a 2% nation building tax charged paid by businesses.

The Cabinet also announced that all religious institutions are exempted from taxes.

The government's information department said the decisions were made in the first Cabinet meeting since Gotabaya Rajapaksa was elected as president.

It said that apart from the VAT tax cut, other changes were to take effect immediately.