Parliament Ends Session Early, Postpones Vote on Dozens of Bills (2)

Bratislava, May 25 (TASR) - Parliament ended its current session ahead of schedule, by skipping the vote on dozens of bills and re-scheduling them to the next regular session instead, slated to begin as of June 13, House Chair Boris Kollar (We Are Family) announced on Thursday. The proposal to finish the session early was submitted by head of SaS caucus Anna Zemanova. It garnered 89 votes out of 135 present lawmakers, with 41 voting against, three abstaining and two not voting. The lawmakers were supposed to hold the vote on the items at 5 p.m., but a new item was added onto the agenda shortly before that; a resolution on Slovakia's voting rights in the EU institutions. Subsequently, the session was adjourned, so as to enable the convening of a session of a relevant committee. After the recess, the lawmakers voted to end the House session. Zemanova declared that a total chaos reigns in Parliament, pointing out to the re-scheduling of some items such as the amendment to the Paragraph 363, registered partnerships or tourist routes. OLaNO leader Igor Matovic was against the early end to the session, though. "There was no chaos, only someone badly wished to hurt the OLaNO party, which had about 40 bills on the agenda," he stated. Smer-SD leader Robert Fico perceived the decision to end the session prematurely as the right thing to do. "If it's necessary, we're ready to deliberate even earlier than in June, when the regular session is scheduled. Let them choose bills important for Slovakia," he said, adding that at the session only personal problems of lawmakers were addressed instead of serious issues. Independent MP and ex-premier (2020-23) Eduard Heger believed that government-sponsored bills are crucial. "Those most important were discussed. We've slashed the campaigning bills because we didn't find them appropriate," he said. mf/mcs