MINSK, 14 July (BelTA) – The parliament is expected to get the package of documents relating to the next year's budget in autumn, BelTA learned from Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus Valery Mitskevich at a session of the Council of the House of Representatives on 14 July.
The Council discussed a rough schedule for preparing items for consideration during the next session of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament. The schedule will be filled with bills, which will be brought into the House of Representatives in line with the annual legislation development plan and in line with instructions and requests from other government agencies. The seventh-convocation parliament will have to work on the next year's package of budget documents for the first time. The package of documents is supposed to be brought into the parliament in autumn.
Valery Mitskevich said that out of the 35 bills on the rough schedule four ones will be given the first reading, 28 ones the second reading (including two draft codes), and three bills will deal with the ratification of international agreements. The MP noted that commissions intend to prepare for consideration about 20 bills in between sessions of the parliament. In other words, most of the documents will be ready before the next session begins. “I would like to draw attention to more proactive participation of MPs in the polishing of bills. They should reflect not only views of authors of the bills but real needs and legal interests of voters. The legislative initiative of MPs themselves will not hurt either,” the deputy head of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament added.
Valery Mitskevich reminded that giving the first reading to new revisions of the draft Administrative Offences Code and the Code of Execution Procedure on Administrative Offences Code, which had been developed upon instructions of the head of state, was the most significant result of the spring session of the parliament. “The Legislation Commission, all MPs will have to do very serious work on quite a tight schedule to prepare them for the second reading during the autumn session. The efforts should produce simple documents, which citizens, commercial entities, and officials participating in administrative procedures can easily understand,” the MP said.
Bills on counteracting criminal activities, protecting personal data, and improving criminal proceedings will be given the second reading during the autumn session. MPs will also have to consider amendments to laws on advertising, on state regulation of trade and public catering, on matters of housing relations.
The improvement of legislative support for the social sphere is in the center of attention of MPs. Amendments to the law on healthcare will be given the second reading. Legislation on pensions is being improved. Legislation is being drafted to allow people with disabilities to more easily get integrated into the society, improve personal independence and self-dependence. Bills on citizenship, on business entities, on scientific, R&D, and innovative activities, on agriculture, on protection and usage of subsurface resources, on customs regulations were described as important.
