Adherence to good lawmaking principles is linked to the rule of law. To ensure the production of good legislation, provisions of the Constitution, the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament and Law No. 4622/2019 regulate individual issues relating to the legislative process and set certain rules to be followed when drafting, filing and voting on a bill or an amendment.
How, when, in what form and with what content ministerial amendments are submitted, discussed and voted on is regulated by Article 74 par. 5 of the Constitution and Articles 87, 88 and 101(5) of the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament. In this context it is stipulated, inter alia, that amendments: a) must be related to the main subject matter of the bill or the proposed law and if they are irrelevant to that subject matter they are not introduced for debate and b) are debated only if they have been submitted at least three days before the beginning of the debate in the Plenary or in the relevant standing committee (see more on issues of good lawmaking in general as well as issues of tabling and voting on amendments in 1,2,3,4,5,6).
On 22/02/2023 the Ministry of Education and Religion submitted to Parliament a bill entitled “Living together in harmony – Breaking the silence”: regulations for the prevention and treatment of violence and bullying in schools and other provisions”.
An amendment was subsequently tabled to the bill, after the deadline for amendments had passed, and containing provisions that were not directly related to the main subject matter that the bill pertained to.
The amendment was submitted just the night before the bill was to be voted on, at 22:55 on 7/03/2023 by the Ministry of Education and Religion and consisted of 10 articles regulating a variety issues including staffing in educational institutes; matters unconnected to the main subject matter of the bill.
On 8/03/2023 the bill was discussed in the Plenary Session of the Parliament and law 5029/2023 was passed, entitled “Living together in harmony – Breaking the silence”: regulations for the prevention and treatment of violence and bullying in schools and other provisions, containing the provisions of the above-mentioned amendment as Articles 44 to 53, despite the fact that the amendment with which they were introduced for adoption was both submitted late and was irrelevant in topic, contrary to the rules of good lawmaking.
Under the rule of law, the government and the Parliament must produce laws by applying the Constitution, the Rules of Procedure of the Parliament and the other rules that have been established to guarantee and promote good and transparent lawmaking practices.
In Greece, however, the violation of the rules of good lawmaking seems to be a long-standing, systematic problem, such as in this case of the passage of Law No. 5029/2023, in the context of which provisions contained in an overdue and irrelevant amendment were tabled and passed.
Bank Account number: 1100 0232 0016 560
IBAN: GR56 0140 1100 1100 0232 0016 560
BIC: CRBAGRAA
In a time where the very foundations of democracy are gradually being eroded by the rise of extreme nationalism, alt-right movements, the spread of disinformation and corporate capture, the efforts of organisations such as Vouliwatch are more relevant than ever.
We rely on the generosity of each and every one of you to continue with our efforts for more transparency and accounta
By financially supporting Vouliwatch you support our litigation strategy, our campaigns for transparency and accountability in the political system, the development of new civic tech tools, our research projects and last but not least our impartial and accurate